I'm WHO?
by Mitsuki Horenake
Summary: Yup, England does something stupid again. This time, he turns Germany into a child! It would be extremely funny if it hadn't been for one small problem...and it's not that he can't turn back to normal.
1. The Incident Itself

**What is up with me with GerIta fanfics with Arthur doing something idiotic? I really don't know, but I decided to do something a little more down to Earth and a bit realistic…meaning Arthur does something idiotic again. What is it? Well, read on! I DO NOT OWN HETALIA. And yes, Charice and Rizal are in here. Sorry 'bout that XD**

**/=+=/**

"Sind Sie für das Treffen bereit, Ludwig?"_["Are you ready for the meeting, Ludwig?"] _

"Herr Bundespräsident...bitte rufen Sie mich während der Konferenz nur bei meinem richtigen Namen.**" **_["Mr. President...please call me by my real name during the meeting."]_

"Selbstverständlich, Deutschland."_["Of course, Deutschland __[1]__."]_

Ludwig watched as his current boss went to his advisors to talk about the meeting that was going to happen with Kiku and Charice with their bosses. He had to admit, Wulff [2] wasn't a bad man. He had obtained the presidential rank on the hope that he would hope the region of lower Saxony will recover from the budget crisis that was gripping those people, yet today he was focusing on international issues with Japan and the Philippines.

"Deutschland." Wulff stepped to him. "The other two are coming in soon."

"Thank you." Ludwig stated. "I'll meet up with them personally. Please prepare your topics of discussion while I see them."

Wulff nodded as Ludwig stepped out of the room. He walked through the hallways before he saw the entrance, hearing the snapping of cameras in the entrance of the building. The doors slowly opened and he saw Prime Minister Kan Naoto [3[ walking into the building with his wife at his side and a mob of security guards behind him. The doors closed behind the mob.

**["Good afternoon, Doitsu."]** He said in Japanese.

**["Good afternoon, Prime Minister."]** Ludwig greeted back in his best Japanese. **["My boss is in the meeting room, waiting for you."]**

**["Thank you."]**

Naoto turned his head and nodded toward one of the security guards before walking with his wife to the meeting room. As the security guards followed him, he noticed that one of them had stayed behind. The man walked up to him and removed his helmet, revealing his face.

"Kiku…since when did you start wearing security uniforms?"

"There was too much security press out there. My boss informed me to cover my face." He answered. "He wants to make sure no one sees me."

"Of course. I understand. The outside world should not know of our appearance." Ludwig turned to Kiku. "Have you seen Charice and Rizal?"

"Their plane had arrived an hour ago, so they should be here soon."

The doors opened again, and President Benigno S. Aquino III [4] walked in with his security guards. He gave a quick nod toward the both of them and then whispered something to a security guard before slowly walking into the meeting room. The security guard removed her helmet, a familiar shining gold clip in her hair.

"Charice?" Ludwig blinked.

"Eh? Hey, Doitsu-ki! Nihon-san!" She chirped and ran toward them. "What do you think? This security suit was custom made for me!"

"I like it." Kiku smiled. "I just had to borrow one from the police force…"

"_Charice…please stop calling me that…"_

"What? Aw, come on!" Charice whimpered. "I like calling you Doitsu-ki!"

"We're in a serious environment, Charice. You have to take things seriously." Ludwig looked around. "Where's your brother, anyway?"

"Who, Rizal? Oh, he's hanging out with Al-kun and Iggy-kun in Hawaii." She stated. "He told me to come here in his place."

"…fine." Ludwig shook his head. "Let's just join our bosses for the meeting. We have serious issues to talk about."

**/=[MEANWHILE, IN HAWAII **_**(which, by the way, is nighttime now)…**_**]=/**

Rizal stared at Arthur on the ground, then to an amused Alfred, and then turned back to Arthur on the ground. He was laughing extremely hard and twitching in a weird way, a hand still wrapped around a cup.

"Is he…going to be OK?"

"Yeah, he's just like this…" Alfred chuckled. "When he's drunk, of course."

"Well, if he's drunk, at least he's not going to-"

He jumped to his feet and started cackling rapidly. Suddenly he ran around them twice in a fast pace, and when he stopped, he was in a white toga and had wings and a halo. He was swinging his wand rapidly and there was a tattoo at his side hip, still laughing.

"-nevermind."

"I'm…f-f-f-_**finally…**_going to…get…my REVEEEEEENNNNNNGGGGGGEEEEE…on _yoooooouuuu…."_

He tried to aim his wand at Alfred and started swinging it rapidly, trying to cast a spell but failing horribly. Meanwhile, Rizal was staring at the both of them before Arthur started laughing even louder and swung his glowing wand in a loud fashion…to absolutely nothing.

"…nothing happened." Rizal stated.

"Ohhhh…hohoho…" Arthur grinned. "We're just…getting _staaarrrttteeddd…."_

**/=[BACK TO GERMANY…]=/**

Ludwig watched the meeting go on as planned. None of the leaders were snapping out into a rage and Charice wasn't breaking anything, so for now a compromise was going to be done. Next to him, he could see Kiku sitting there looking blankly at the other leaders and Charice on his other side was trying her best to figure out what anyone was talking about.

_She is a fairly young country that hasn't done much of political work._ He thought. _I guess I'm going to have to explain all this later-_

A sharp pain shot itself in Ludwig's head, and he cringed in pain as he keeled over. Kiku and Charice turned to their heads in shock as the other leaders stopped dead in their conversation. Ludwig fell out of his chair into Charice's arms, his lungs burning as if they were shrinking.

"Doitsu-ki!" She turned to Kiku. "You're older than me! What's going on?"

"I-I don't know…I haven't seen anything like this before…" He answered. "This must be…"

Meanwhile, Wulff was screaming at his advisors to contact National Security as soon as possible. The other two leaders watched in shock as Ludwig continued to cringe in pain. Kiku could only cringe in remembering that the same thing was happening to Alfred when he was attacked a long time ago. He was at his side when that happened, and…

"Herr Bundespräsident!" _["Sir!"]_ An advisor said in German. "Das Verteidigungsministerium meldet keinen Angriff oder einen sonstigen Bruch unserer Sicherheit. Alles ist ruhig." _["The National Security hasn't seen any breach or attack. Nothing is going on."]_

"Wenn das so ist, was geht dann...?" _["If that is the case, then what is going…?"]_

Everyone suddenly got blinded by a bright light that erupted by Ludwig. When the light receded, Charice looked down to the man…or rather, boy. For some reason, Ludwig had turned back into a child, his uniform shrunk to fit his figure. He opened his eyes and looked up.

"What the…?" He looked around. _**"What the hell happened to me?"**_

"…oh…my…god."

"_**What?"**_ He turned to Charice. "Other than the fact that I'm suddenly seven years old, what the hell are you gawking about?"

"You're…pronouncing your w's…" She gasped. "Oh my god, _**he has an Italian accent **__**[5]**__**!"**_

"**THAT'S** what you're freaking out about?" Ludwig panicked.

It was then that they realized that Kiku was explaining to their leaders about what was going on to Ludwig. After a few minutes, Wulff nodded and turned to lean toward his country, trying to do his best to show him his upmost respect toward his older and wiser counterpart.

"Deutschland, dieser Ort ist nicht mehr sicher für Sie. Sie sind in dieser Form zu verletzlich und wir wissen nicht, ob da draußen jemand ist, der Ihre Lage ausnutzen könnte." _["Deutschland, this place is no longer safe for you. You are too vulnerable, and we don't know who might be out there to take advantage of your condition."]_

"Bitte, Herr Präsident, ich kann noch immer-"_["Please sire, I can still-"]_

"Es ist schon gut. Ich kann dieses Treffen allein bewältigen. Dafür bin ich ausgebildet worden." _["It's OK. I can handle this meeting by myself. That was what I was trained to do."]_ Wulff stated. "Ich habe Kiku angewiesen sich um Sie zu kümmern. _["I have told Kiku that he will take care of you.]_ Charice, if you don't mind, I want you to join Kiku in protecting my country."

"I'll do what I can, sir!"

"Thank you." He turned back to Ludwig. "Ich habe Kikus Telefonnummer für den Notfall. Ich ersuche Sie dringenst, sofort zu gehen — solange die Presse noch abwesend ist." _["I have Kiku's phone number in case of emergency contact. I implore you that you leave now, while the media is gone."]_

"Es tut mir leid…" _["…I'm sorry…"]_

"Es ist schon gut, Deutschland. Schließlich ist es meine Aufgabe Ihnen zu dienen!" _["It's OK, Deutschland. After all, I am here to serve you!"]_

**/=+=/**

"OK then…" Charice said as she and Kiku walked out of the state hall. "Where are we going first?"

"Let's go to my house first…" Ludwig answered. "I want a change in clothes…if people saw me in my uniform, then my cover will be blown."

"Right…" Kiku looked up. "After that, where can we go? Do we leave the country?"

"We shouldn't go that far, in case his leader needs him." Charice said, trying to compromise. "Ludwig, what's your verdict?"

"…we go to Austria's house."

**/=+=/**

**[1] ****Deutschland**** is Germany's real name. The name "Germany" is actually an exonym used by Americans because the land was used to be called "Germania" around AD 100. In my personal opinion, the Japanese name "Doitsu" is closer to the name Deutschland. By the way, Deutschland is pronounced "Doit-sh-land". In case anyone doesn't know this already, Japan is an exonym that was pulled out by Portuguese traders, more specifically the word **_**Jepang.**_

**[2] ****Christian Wulff**** is the current president of Germany, elected in June 30****th**** 2010. He's fairly popular there, and he has a Wiki page. Look him up if you're extremely curious, cause I don't have enough room to type up everything that he did.**

**[3] ****Kan Naoto****, or in American terms ****Naoto Kan**** is the Prime Minister of Japan. Check his Wiki page, but all I know is that he resigned his office and was reelected a couple of times.**

**[4] ****Benigno S. Aquino III**** is the current president of the Philippines, elected in June 30****th**** 2010. He has a Wiki page, but a small fact that it's fun to know is that his father is the first president of the Republic of the Philippines.**

**[5] ****This is a homage to the English Dub. Sorry if it makes you mad, so…**

**Yeah, the beginning sucks. The second chapter's going to be better, OK? Don't rush me…**

**And for the translations…help me, since I got Google Translate…**


	2. How To Cover His Trail

**More interesting business! This time, we get out of the politics and into the Hetalia! Happiness? Happiness! Finally, we get into…PLOT RELEVANCE!**

**/=+=/**

When they got to Ludwig's house, Charice was quick to plop him down on a small chair. Kiku couldn't help but chuckle as she was measuring the poor young boy for all the measurements for a good outfit change, but since he's a proper man he pulled it off. Ludwig could only grumble in response.

"Hey, Nihon-san…can you do me a favor?" She asked. "Call Roddy-kun and tell him that we're coming over to his house in a bit."

"If he asks us why…?"

"Try your best to explain without screaming _**he-turned-into-a-child."**_

"Understood."

Kiku headed off into the other room as Charice pulled out a few rags that were hanging around the house. Ludwig could only sit there and watch as she started comparing different colored rags to his skin. Suddenly, she grabbed a long black one and a white tie and started working on it.

"This is disastrous…I'm not supposed to be like this!"

Charice chuckled to herself as she fixed the outfit in front of her.

"I'm not supposed to be a child…I'm supposed to be a grown country, the Federal Republic of Deutschland, part of the G8 and…what the _**hell**_ are you laughing about?"

"I-I'm sorry, but…" She snickered. "I can't take you seriously with that Italian accent of yours!"

He pouted and sat down on the chair as she continued laughing and fixing up the outfit, swearing to God that if he ever returned normal, the first thing that he was going to do is smack Charice over the head with a good back hand. After a few long minutes, she lifted up the outfit.

"Here we go!" She chirped. "Try this one out!"

Ludwig grumbled but complied. After being helped by Charice _(something that she thought was extremely funny)_, he looked in the mirror. It looked as if he was wearing a priest robe and it was made just for him _(well, it was)_. Ludwig was about to say something when Charice messed up his gelled hair.

"There you go, that looks better!"

"What the hell?" He looked up at a grinning Charice. "What was that for?"

"You gonna have to look like a child, Doitsu-ki!" She chirped. "But still…you're missing something…_**AH-HAH!**_ I got it! Wait here!"

Ludwig watched as she ran the heck out of the room, almost running into the closed door. He mumbled something as he turned back to the mirror, seeing himself in the garb. For some reason, he felt as if he had worn this before. Sure there were a few details changed, but…

"Doitsu."

"Hm?" He turned to Kiku. "How did Austria take it?"

"He figured that it was something Arthur did." The Japanese man concluded. "He's willing to open his doors to you…though he does warn you that he has company over."

"Thank you." He answered.

"Well, well…Charice really has done some good work on your clothing." He chuckled.

"_Not you too, Kiku…"_

"_**I GOT IT!"**_

They both jumped to see Charice at the door with a grin on her face and the weirdest looking hat that he has ever seen in his life. Without even thinking about it she just _**dropped it ON HIS HEAD**_, almost knocking him over. He looked back in the mirror and couldn't help but think _"hey, this makes sense"_.

"Um…where did you get this hat?"

"Gil-kun's closet." She chirped. "It was hidden in there, so it took me a while to get it out~ :D"

"_Charice…you don't go digging into people's closets like that…"_

"For a hat?" She laughed. "Oh please, it's no big deal! It probably couldn't even fit his head if he wanted to! Hey, Nihon-san! What did Roddy-kun say?"

"It's safe to come over…but he has guests there as well, so we must proceed cautiously."

"No problem!" She chirped. "OK, Doitsu-ki! We're _**going to AUSTRIA!"**_

**/=+=/**

"What are we going to tell his companions, Nihon-san?" Charice said, looking at Ludwig the entire time. "Will they believe that he's actually Doitsu-ki as a child?"

"That's a long shot, and I don't think that they'll buy it." Kiku turned to Ludwig. "What do you say, Doitsu?"

"Say that I was found in Germany wandering around lost and alone." He stated. "Since countries are naturally drawn to each other, mention that you think that I'm a country."

"And you?" Charice said.

"…I'll…say that I have amnesia or something…"

"Well, your eyes can pull of the amnesia shtick." She stated. "They always had that dead color to them [1]."

Ludwig stared at her with a weird look on his face to see that she was actually dead serious about that statement. After that, they turned their heads to see that they had reached Austria's house. Kiku knocked on the door, and almost immediately Roderich was quick to answer.

"I made sure not to tell anyone about the problem, but-"

Roderich turned his head toward Ludwig and instantly paled up / froze. Charice and Kiku turned between the both of them, Ludwig being the most confused out of all of them. After a few minutes, Charice lifted up her finger and pointed at Ludwig with a blank look.

"That's Ludwig, just so you know." She stated.

"L-Ludwig…of course…I just…" Roderich rubbed his chin. "Sorry, I just thought you looked familiar…"

"…it's _**Ludwig."**_ She answered. "He's familiar as he is…"

"Are you OK, Roderich?" Kiku asked. "You look pale."

"Yeah…" Charice blinked. "As if we pulled a Lazarus or something."

Roderich was about to hear something when he heard a familiar sound coming from inside the house. Everyone looked at the side and saw that it was Feliciano, looking around for Roderich. He saw the man and "ve~"d as he charged toward him with a smile.

"There you are, Roderich! Elizabeta was waiting for-"

He saw Ludwig in his baby form and froze. The wind immediately died down with that moment _(almost as if there was a cue or something)_ as Feliciano walked past the Austrian and toward Ludwig, tears going through his eyes. Suddenly, he was squeezed, scaring him.

"Gah-!"

"_Holy Rome! Oh my god, oh my god…"_ He sobbed. _"Y-you're here…you're finally here…"_

Ludwig was startled, unable to figure out just what was going on. He turned to Charice, who was giving him a look that seemed to say _"do something, Ludwig!"_ as hidden as she could. After a few minutes, he turned back to him and tried to straighten himself.

"Um…uh…" He blinked. "W-who…are you?"

"E-eh? You don't know who I…o-oh of course! It's been so long, you probably don't realize who I am." He backed up. "It's me, Italy! Remember, the girl in the dress?"

_A dress?_ "Uh…n-no, I'm…sorry."

Feliciano's eyes widened as he started shaking, scaring Ludwig. Meanwhile, the others were shocked that he was able to protect his identity even from a crying Italian. Kiku knew that he had to interfere before Ludwig cracked.

"Feliciano, we found him after we had a meeting in Germany." He stated as calmly as he could. "We think that he's a country since we were drawn to him, but…when we talked to him, he said that he couldn't remember anything in his past."

"He can't remember…?" He turned to Ludwig.

"…I'm sorry." He answered.

"_**I'm sorry…"**_

Ludwig paused, a strange voice echoing from the back of his head. Who was that voice anyway, and why did she sound so familiar? He blinked and found himself looking back at Feliciano, still crying. He decided to cut him out of his misery.

"…Italy?"

Feliciano looked up in shock to see a small look of surprise on Ludwig's face. The voice on the back of his head made him say something really weird.

"I…I thought you were a girl."

"Ve~~~I wasn't…I'm sorry." He chuckled lightly. "But...you remember who I am?"

"…just barely." He answered.

"Well, it doesn't matter now! You're probably hungry, so I must make you something to eat!" He turned around. "Come! I'll make you your favorite!"

Ludwig watched as Feliciano turned around and ran straight into the kitchen, leaving everyone else alone. Soon the word "food" struck Charice's head, and she went screaming into the house for Italian food, Kiku worried about Feliciano's safety and running in after her. Roderich turned to Ludwig.

"That was a lucky shot, Ludwig…saying something like that." Roderich stated. "How long are you planning on playing this charade?"

"…until I turn back to normal." He answered. "I'll… think of something, don't worry…"

From the back of his mind, he couldn't help but wonder what that voice was all about. Maybe if he played along…just for a little while longer…he might find out some answers to his questions…

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Hello? I'm sorry to bother you, but I want to talk to you. Call me soon, OK? All right, I'll see you!"

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**[1]**** It's been stated that one of Germany's traits is that his eyes have a dead color shade of blue to them, similar to Japan and Liechtenstein. Some people state that the lack of shine is a trait of the amnesia, but then again Liechtenstein is a part of the Holy Roman Empire and they never explored her past. Hm…**

**Sorry, but I couldn't give you Ludwig's cell number. Security reasons, you see :D**


	3. Past and Present Combine

**More chapters on the way. Hopefully, no one bashes it so badly that there're more flames than actual reviews. Seriously, if you don't believe the HRE = Germany theory, then don't flame me about it. Go back out the other way and pretend you never read it. Duh :D**

**/=+=/**

As Ludwig walked through with Roderich, he saw Feliciano making food in the kitchen with the other two hovering around trying to help him cook. He couldn't help but smell the familiarity of his cooking, and his stomach growled. Feliciano heard that, and he turned his head to see that he was starving.

"Oh, Holy Rome! You're hungry, aren't you?" He chirped. "Don't worry, I'll be done soon!"

"Um…thank you."

He sat perfectly normal on the nearby chair, blinking and waiting for something to happen. As he saw Feliciano running around trying to clean everything up, he was having weird flashbacks: he was sitting on this chair a long time ago, and someone was running around with a push broom, cleaning around as fast as she could.

_What is this…?_ He blinked. _I'm remembering more in the last few hours than my whole lifetime…_

"Holy Rome~!"

"Eh?"

"I asked you a question!" Feliciano chirped. "Do you want extra sauce on your pasta?"

"…yes, of course." He blushed. "That would be nice-"

He paused, a hand to his throat, as Feliciano turned to him in confusion. Meanwhile, Charice and Kiku looked at each other with a panicked look on their faces. _Oh crap, he got his German accent back! __**NOW**__ what's Feliciano gonna think?_

"U-um…are you OK, Holy Rome?" Feliciano asked. "You…sound weird."

"O-oh…well, I um…" For the first time in his life, he was extremely hating his German accent right now.

"W-well…don't worry about it! It's probably just the modern day affecting him!" Charice said, waving her hands around like she wasn't in a freaking-out mode. "R-remember, Holy Roman Empire had a lot of countries that were German speakers [1]!"

"…t-that is true…" Feliciano smiled. "O-oh, did they introduce themselves to you?"

"Formally, yes." He answered, still a little shocked from the sudden accent change. "Don't worry about it."

"Haha…you actually sound so mature with that new accent." Feliciano laughed. "Like someone that I know…"

For some reason, Feliciano grew silent from that statement. The whole room sank into some really random form of emoness as Ludwig continued to think about what he could do to distract him. Suddenly, he saw Charice turn her head.

"_**The pasta's overboiling!"**_

They all ran as fast as they could toward the pot to save the pasta _(screaming like nutcases) _as Ludwig was so happy that he got himself out of another bad loophole in the plan. It was then that he realized that Roderich was sitting next to him, a blank look on his face.

"_Do you have any idea how to turn back to normal, Ludwig?"_

"_My only guess is that Arthur has something to do with this."_ He answered. _"I got Charice to call her brother after dinner, so we'll find out then."_

"_All right."_ Roderich nodded. _"As for Feliciano…you do know that you're hurting him."_

"_Hm?"_

"_Being like this."_ He said. _"He thinks you're Holy Roman Empire."_

"_I know…I don't know what to do now…"_ He said, semi-panicking. _"I can keep faking the amnesia until I find something out…"_

Roderich could only shake his head as Feliciano and Kiku began to serve the dishes. From the corner of his eye, he could see Charice pulling out her cell phone _(covered with those charm things that she bargained Japan for)_ and calling someone from outside the room. Kiku looked at him with a finger over his lips. _No talking to us about it._

"I hope you like it, Holy Rome!" He said. "I put my heart and soul into it!"

"I-I'm sure you did." He was completely aware of how good his food was, but faking tasting it for the first time is going to be hard. He took a small bite. "T-this is good!"

"I'm glad you like it!" Feliciano chirped. "It's a common dish in my country, so I know how to make it best!"

"That's good to hear…" Ludwig said, eating in peace. "It's…nice to see you smile again."

Feliciano smiled at that statement, making Ludwig blush. Suddenly, they heard screaming from outside the room. Kiku and Ludwig looked at each other. _Charice is obviously getting into an argument with someone…time to interfere._

"Um…Italy?" Ludwig turned his head. "Where's the nearest bathroom?"

"Two doors down from the left…" Feliciano answered with a sad smile. "Nothing's changed in this house, Holy Rome. Don't worry about getting confused."

"Feliciano, if I may…since I have been here before…" Kiku stood up. "Perhaps I can escort him?"

"All right…" Feliciano pouted. He obviously wanted to do it himself.

Kiku nodded as he followed Ludwig out of the room. They turned a few corners and saw Charice screaming some choice Filipino words into the phone. After a few minutes, she quickly calmed down and said something else before hanging up the phone and sighing on the wall.

"This isn't going to be good…" She sighed.

"Is something wrong?" Kiku asked. "Were you able to contact any of them?"

"I got Rizal. It turns out that Arthur is now drunk and high and as of right now on a plane to another state…" She stated. "Not only that, he tried casting a spell on Alfred and failed horribly."

"How did his spell get to me?" Ludwig spat.

"Wish I knew. Too bad that none of them can go ask him." She grumbled. "They don't know which state he went into and apparently he forgot his cell phone too!"

"That isn't good…" Kiku sighed. "Until we find out where he is, we can't leave Ludwig alone…"

"I-It's Holy Rome…"

"Eh?"

"Until we get out of here…call me Holy Rome for now." Ludwig said. "We don't want Feliciano figuring it out yet…"

"We can handle it." Kiku stated. "Come on, we should go back."

**/=+=/**

They walked back to the kitchen, where they saw a woman talking to Feliciano with a shocked look on her face. Their entrance allowed her to turn her head, and she was revealed to be Elizabeta, clearly surprised about something. Her eyes turned to Ludwig, and that was when they knew what they were talking about.

"H-Holy Rome…!" She gasped. "Y-you're back!"

"Um…yes, I am." He answered. "It's…nice to see you again, Hungary."

Feliciano smiled at the awkward meeting between the two of them as Ludwig noticed something: he was smiling in a way that he had never seen him smile before. He was happier than usual, almost as if his change had lit up his life. Ludwig blinked, wondering what was going on.

"You're probably hungry right now!" Feliciano smiled. "Sit down! Eat!"

"O-of course!" He sat down at the table, noticing something. "Hm? Are you going to eat?"

"I actually want to go to the bathroom myself. If you excuse me…"

He stood up and quickly went out the room, leaving the others alone. Kiku chuckled as he sat next to Elizabeta, and his height made him notice that he had smuggled something to her. It looked like a book…OK, he knew what it was. Nevermind. Meanwhile, Charice was slurping all the spaghetti on her plate.

_Great…now Elizabeta thinks I'm this Holy Rome…_ He thought, eating his food. _Now what do I do…?_

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Hello? It's me again. Listen, you haven't called me in the last few hours, and I just want to know where you are. Call me back, OK? I have something extraordinary to tell you!"

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**[1] ****Many of the countries that spawned out of the Holy Roman Empire **_**(Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Luxemburg, and Germany of course)**_** ended up with German being one of the official languages. I remember that from working on "Holy Roman Empire" :D**

**On another fun note, I made it a challenge to try justifying Holy Roman Empire in the English Dub to having an Italian accent in at least one fanfic. So…this is my answer **_**(actually, one of them)**_**. He grew into the German accent randomly…either that or he tried the accent to impress Italy XD**

**And if you want to bother yourself for a few minutes, throw out some guesses on who's calling Ludwig. You probably know who it is anyway :D**


	4. Maybe They Weren't Far Off

**I'm having fun with this right now! OK, fans! Here's the next chapter! **

**/=+=/**

Elizabeta led him around Austria's house, so he was forced to see everything he already knew yet again. Fortunately, it meant that he can be distracted by the fact that he had no idea what to do about the fact that he was mislabeled as this Holy Rome man.

"In the end, nothing much has changed since the last time you had left so long ago." She stated. "You'll remember the house layout soon."

"…of course…" He said, mumbling it.

"Haha…I'm surprised. Knowing now that your territory had separated into Germanic nations, I knew that you were going to switch accents. But…I never thought that it would happen so quickly!" She laughed. "You sound so mature with your German accent!"

"Please, Hungary…don't rub it in…"

"Ahahaha…I'm sorry." She smiled. "Holy Rome, if I may ask you a question…"

"Hm? Oh, sure." He answered. "What is it?"

"I-I've heard from Italy that you don't remember much about your past." She blinked. "Is that true?"

"…yes. This is true." He lied.

"I-is there anything that you do remember?"

Ludwig was taken aback, wondering how he was going to get himself out of this. He could say no and save the whole tension that was going on, but suddenly he had a flashback. He was standing in the middle of a room mumbling something to himself when he opened a door and saw…

"…_I-Italy's in my house…"_

"Eh?"

"I-I remember when I first found out that Italy was part of my house." He answered. "I was…so shocked that she was actually with me…"

"Aw…you do remember something!"

"Yeah…yeah, I guess I do…" He blinked. "Hungary, may I ask what happened to the two people that escorted me here?"

"Oh, them? I think they're in the library, Holy Rome." She answered. "Why?"

"I, um…I'm just wondering. Perhaps I should…try to find the library…"

**/=+=/**

When he went to the library, he saw that Japan was sitting perfectly quiet on the couch as Charice started digging through the shelves. She seemed to be extremely curious about the books concerning about this Holy Roman Empire person _(which didn't surprise him one bit)_. Of course, she didn't find much.

"It's really hard to find anything here…" She complained.

"Please Charice…walk me through this." Kiku turned to her. "How would reading human interpretations of someone's past help us in this situation?"

"Charice, you have no idea what you're doing." Ludwig said. "Humans don't know us as close as the rest of us."

"I know that. That's not what I'm looking for~!" She chirped. "You see, humans end up shaping our histories anyway. So if we at least find out how the humans interfered with our lives, then we might be able to at least figure out anything personal. Think about it, humans are the only things on this planet that can dissolve countries. And dissolution is the only permanent death we have."

"I already know what Holy Roman Empire is, Charice." Ludwig stated. "It was created in the 800s by Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne and was dissolved on August 6, 1806 by the French-"

Something stabbed the back of his mind and he collapsed on the ground.

**/=+=/**

"_Give it up, Heilrich…it's over. I've won."_

_He opened his eyes weakly to see France hovering over him with a blade in his stomach. He coughed once, and he felt blood drip from his mouth. He was dying by France's hands, was he? He turned his head and saw a man standing next to him. He was extremely short with a huge blue hat on his head. It was the man that dissolved his kingdom…Napoleon._

"_So then…I'm going to die now…"_

"_Napoleon has taken down your king…my kingdom will expand." France smiled. "Meaning yes…you will die…"_

"…_Italy…"_

_His eyes fought themselves to stay open, but then he gave in to the lack of power in his body. He slowly let them droop, trying to find any type of power in his body to make him move…even crawl. He couldn't die here…not when she was still out there. He…he has to know…_

"_**From now on…you're going to be known as Germany."**_

**/=+=/**

"A-are you all right?"

"Hey, if you can hear us, twitch or blink or punch someone in the face or _**SOMETHING!"**_

Ludwig's eyes twitched before opening slowly. He saw Kiku kneeling down just a few feet above him, a concerned look on his face. That didn't even compare to Charice's look, which reminded him to how a mother is to her sick child. She kept moving her hair out of the way, as if to get a better view of him.

"Nothing's broken or something…?" She asked.

Ludwig turned his head around. He was still in the library…Austria's library. He remembered now…he remembered how he was here because Arthur _(most likely)_ turned him into a child and how he was forced to hide here, where Italy accidentally mistaken him for…

"…_Heilrich."_

"C-come again?"

"_My name…is Heilrich."_

"Oh my god, he got brain damage!" Charice panicked. "Doitsu-ki, can you hear me? Your name is Ludwig, remember? Brother of Gilbert? You know, the one with the narcissistic issues and the bird that sounds exactly like him?"

"_I know that…but my real name…"_ He sat up. _"My real name is Heilrich…"_

"Whoa." Charice turned to Kiku. "Is this a side effect of Arthur's magic? Hadn't seen that before."

"No…I think it's something else." Kiku turned to Ludwig. "Maybe being mistaken as this man Holy Rome is making him remember something?"

"…_red spine."_

"OK, what?"

"_Red spine…second book from the third shelf to the left…hidden behind the atlas…"_

As Charice wondered what he meant, Kiku quickly jumped to his feet to search where Ludwig was specifying. After he found the atlas, he found what he was talking about: a red book with a frayed spine and browned pages. There were scrawled words on the cover that seemed to be written in quill pen.

"Charice…Ludwig…you have to see this…"

She helped Ludwig to sit in the couch as Kiku sat between them. He straightened out the book, surprised that the pages were still somewhat sturdy and thus made it easy to turn the page. He couldn't read the words on the cover, so he flipped onto the first page.

_**~Property of Holy Roman Empire~**_

_**WARNING! NO ONE READS THIS!**_

_**This means you, Hungary.**_

…

_**And Austria.**_

"Whoa…" Charice looked up. "Diary of this Holy Rome guy."

"Not Holy Rome…" Ludwig blinked, somewhat understanding. "Me."

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Hey, this is totally unawesome West! Here I thought you'd always answer your phone! Listen, if you're even going to listen to me and my total awesome voice, I'm telling you that I'm not going to be home tonight and for the whole week. I'm gonna be bothering Roderich again. Hope you don't destroy anything while the awesome me is gone! Call me back when you get this message!"

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**Having fun over there, guys? The mystery continues…**


	5. Dear Diary

**And this, my friends, is why you use diaries! Cause memory loss is actually quite common in clichés, right? Exactly!**

**/=+=/**

"So this is your diary?" Kiku asked.

"Yes…I remember having this handwriting before…" Ludwig stated. "I was self-teaching myself to write…"

"Well…" Charice looked in. "By all accounts, that really sucks. At least it improved over time."

"Shut up, Charice." He looked in. "What's the first entry?"

"Ah, yes." Kiku nodded.

**[~"Entry #1"~]**

_**Dear Diary,**_

_**My efforts again have been fruitless. No matter how many times I try, I cannot get Italy to join me in expanding my territory. I do not understand what she is thinking. Is her grandfather not the great Roman Empire, the strongest nation known to man? Why does she deny this power that I will soon obtain…?**_

_**I need to know…I need her by my side…**_

**[~"End"~]**

The room was silent. Ludwig rubbed the back of his head and then his forehead as Kiku and Charice stared at him with amused looks on their faces. Really, the only thing they were waiting for is who was going to make the remark first. Someone had to say it. _**SOMEONE**_ had to.

"…she?"

"Shut up, Charice…"

"…_**she?"**_

"**SHUT UP****, **Charice…"

"…do we even get an explanation for this?"

"Yes." Ludwig pouted _(which, in child form, means it looks freakin' cute)_. "When Italy was still a child, Hungary seemed to love putting him in dresses. Austria had more fun calling him a girl. And no one could blame him, since his voice was so high it sounded like a girl's voice."

Charice stared at him with a blank look on her face. Kiku could only chuckle at those words, leaving Ludwig once again blushing and pouting and wondering what everyone was laughing about.

"_Ah, Hungary…pushing your interests on small, innocent young children like Feliciano, I see…"_ He chuckled under his breath.

"Holy…mother…of fandango…with cottage cheese and maple syrup…" Charice blinked. "That. Explains. _**EVERYTHING."**_

"Explains _**what?"**_

"Everything! He knows how to cook, cleans without even being told to, not to mention his musical talent~!"

"Um…Charice, that's…" Ludwig shook his head. "That's from living with Austria."

"Oh…oh, true~!" She chirped. "Whatever. At that point, we might as well read the next entry!"

"We don't have to. It's just seven pages of Heilrich saying how he kept failing to recruit Italy to his side." Kiku chuckled. "In fact, one of the entries mentions you testing out an Italian accent just to get her to like you more."

"Pfft…desperate, much?"

"…"

"Oh. _**Oh."**_ She grinned. "Well…no wonder Eliza-chan loved dressing him up~ :D"

"Oh, here we go." Kiku flipped a few pages. "Here's a different entry."

**[~"Entry #23"~]**

_**Dear Diary,**_

_**The most wonderful thing happened to me, dear diary! While I was quieting a rebellion in the western lands, my servant Austria had added Italy to my kingdom. Now she is living at my house! In my house! I cannot believe it! I can now get to see her every single day now…**_

_**Now I can ask her if she can join me in becoming the next Roman Empire every single day. Sooner or later, she will see the error of her ways and join me. Sooner or later she will be by my side. Sooner or later…I will be able to protect her…all by myself…**_

**[~End~]**

Charice's eyes were sparkling at that point, obviously having the mental time-of-her-life. Ludwig could only rub his forehead and blush at the weird look on her face. Kiku chuckled as he looked through all the pages, reading all the small incidences that somehow almost always had something to do with either asking Italy to join his conquest or something Austria did to her.

"Hm…I don't know how life was in Europe back then, but back in my homeland this was called _'obsession'_ and _'stalking'."_

"Not you too, Kiku…"

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask you something about this…" Charice looked up to him. "How, um…'old' were you at this time?"

"I…want to say six? Seven?" Ludwig rubbed his forehead. "I can't remember."

"A fairly young age. And to know that you're in love at that age…" Kiku grinned. "Not bad, Ludwig…or should I say Heilrich for now?"

"You're such a _**man,**_ Doitsu-ki!"

"…shut up, Charice."

**[~"Entry #50"~]**

_**Dear Diary,**_

_**I-I don't even know how to explain it. I had no cause for this. I-I had the strangest dream ever. Do you know the river behind my house? I had a dream that I was swimming there with my dog. It was a calming process when I saw Italy coming toward me with a smile on her face. I panicked and hid in the water, asking her to get me a towel. She did so, only to come back and swim in the river with me…naked.**_

_**NAKED**__**!**_

_**W-what am I supposed to do with that dream? What does that even mean? Oh diary, I am so confused…**_

**[~"End"~]**

"Whoa…" Charice started laughing. "A wet dream at the age of _**six?"**_

"_**SHUT UP,**_ Charice…"

She had to stifle her chuckling, but by the look of things it looked like it was destroying her lung capacity. Kiku couldn't help but chuckle as well, making the poor nation-turned-child blush so hard that he relived the dream. It wasn't bad now, since he now had the tendency to sleep naked, hence he was used to it…

"Just read another one, Kiku." She said, still chuckling. "Something serious, so that I can regain my breath…"

"Of course." He answered. "Oh, here we go…"

**[~"Entry #109"~]**

_**I finally understand everything now…**_

_**I finally asked her once again to join me and become the next Roman Empire. After all this time, she still refused to join me. Oh dear diary, why did I snap at her? Why did I scare her? I was shaking her rapidly and making her cry. Why did I do that…?**_

_**She caved in and told me everything. Her grandfather, despite the fact that he was a great empire, was too large to manage. She told me that his body was covered with scars of rebellion, from people that could not handle him. Then she looked at me…and told me that she liked me just the way I was.**_

_**She liked me…**_

_**She…liked me…**_

_**I could not handle being there with so much emotion running through me. I had to go…I had to leave her, even though I wanted nothing more than to hold her and wipe her tears away. She truly cared for me…that was all I can think of at that time.**_

_**I understand now. My leaders will still wish to expand, and hence I will still expand my territory. But from now on, I will not force her to join me. She has suffered enough.**_

**[~"End"~]**

Kiku looked up from the diary and saw Charice cuddling Ludwig in her arms cooing and chirping and purring and screaming of pure innocent love. He chuckled, knowing that something like love was definitely something up her alley [1].

"You're so cute when you're love-struck~!"

"…_shut up, Charice…"_

"And you're not even denying it!" She chirped. "That's cuter!"

"…Kiku…help me…"

"I wish to…but she has a point." Kiku chuckled.

"Dammit, Kiku, I oughta-"

"Hm? I'm at the final entry already." Kiku blinked. "But half the book is still empty."

"I hid the book when I left the house for war." Ludwig remembered. "So that I could go back to it when I came home."

"Read it, Nihon-san! Let's see what it says!"

**[~"Entry #110"~]**

_**Dear Diary,**_

_**I am sad to say that this will be the last time that I will write in you this year. My leaders are spreading their influence…I have to go into battle, as the Holy Roman Empire…as the ideal that runs each and every soldier's mind, body and soul. I must go into battle, and I must leave you behind.**_

_**Diary, I entrust you with a task. I will hide you in the library, behind the books that I know Austria and Hungary will never touch. Sooner or later, be it tomorrow, the next day or even eons from now, Italy will find you. When she does, tell her all my secrets. Tell her everything that I had told you. She has told me everything about her life, and I feel like it is my duty to do the same.**_

_**Italy…if you're reading this, then these are my last words to you. I'm sorry that I had been forcing myself on you this whole time. I'm sorry that I never asked you why until yesterday…the day where you told me everything. I have told you everything in these pages, save one thing. Italy…I wish to tell you my human name.**_

_**It's**_

**[~~]**

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Well, _**what is it?"**_

"W-what's what?"

"Dammit, Doitsu-ki! You know what I mean!" Charice panicked. _**"What's your human name?"**_

"…it's _**Heilrich**_. I already said that."

"Oh…OH!" Charice jumped. "Right, I knew that!"

_Sure you did…_

"It's too bad, though…" Kiku sighed, closing the book. "By the looks of things, Italy has not seen you leave or even this book…you just up and vanished."

Ludwig closed his eyes and slowly remembered the past. He remembered the marching of the warriors, a painting in his hand that he could not take with him, hiding in the shadows, walking down a lone stone road, hearing the shifting of a bucket filled with water…

"_No…she saw me…"_

They turned their heads as Ludwig continued to remember. 'She' had found him while he was so close to leaving. 'She' had tears coming in 'her' eyes when he told 'her' the news. 'She' was the one who gave him 'her' underwear as a parting gift _(that he refused to say out loud…god knows what Charice is going to say with THAT bit of information)_. He, unable to give 'her' anything, decided that he was going to…kiss…'her'…

"Pfft…you kissed Feli-chan?"

Damn, he said it out loud…

"I-It was the only way that I could tell her…" He panicked. He was using the word 'her' a lot. "That I…love her…"

"Whoa…" Charice chuckled. "Is that past tense?"

Ludwig blushed and turned his head around, giving her the message. She did a Hungary squeal as Kiku had the biggest grin on his face that the Japanese man had ever had on his face. He obviously started something wrong. It had to be Charice and Kiku that was with him. Why couldn't it be Rizal? Why couldn't it be Yao? He'd even take America's brother over these two…whoever he was.

"Well, that solves that part of the problem." Kiku smiled. "At least Holy Rome still loves…'her', am I correct?"

"…"

"Ah, Holy Rome…then and now…after two thousand years _(maybe more)_, he still loves that Italian…" Charice chirped. "Well, who _**doesn't**_ love an Italian?"

"Should you tell him about these feelings?" Kiku asked.

"…I don't know." Ludwig answered. "Yes, I do love him…but is it Holy Roman Empire's feelings…or Germany's?"

"Couldn't it be both?" Charice asked. "I mean, Heil-ki and Doitsu-ki are one and the same."

_Whoa, she's quick on a nickname. _Kiku thought.

"…no. Because I-" He closed his eyes. "Feliciano…he only loves Holy Rome."

"Doitsu-ki…"

"We have to show him my diary. He has to know everything." Ludwig jumped off the couch. "That way, he can find some form of closure."

"And what of you?" Kiku asked.

"…I'll figure everything out…"

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Hello? Are you still there…? It's only been a few hours, but…call me back, all right?"

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**[1] ****I've read somewhere **_**("You Are Filipino If…")**_** that Filipinos are as passionate about love as they are religion. I'm not saying that we're like FRANCE'S level, but it's up there. I'm passionate about love, otherwise where'd all my GerIta fanfics come from :D**

**Please wait for the next chapter~ :D**


	6. How Unawesome Can This Get?

**Anyone having fun out there yet? Cause seriously, four chapters and 29 reviews…never had something like that before. So you guys must be enjoying yourself! So…have fun~ :D**

**/=+=/**

Kiku was the first person to leave the library, the notebook in hand. Charice followed suit, with Ludwig walking along _(he had to get used to the small feet he was forced to use)_. As they walked the hallway, they heard a strange laugh from the entrance. And by strange, we mean…oddly unique. Ludwig cringed.

"It's…bruder…" He rubbed his forehead.

"Is that a good thing?" Kiku asked.

"We'll see…"

Charice led the way as she walked the corner and saw Gilbert laughing and annoying Roderich as always. He turned his head and saw the interested look of a Filipina in the room. His head turned down and saw Ludwig in his child form and instantly paled…a lot more than before. That's when they realized that it was _not_ a good thing.

"**JAPANESE CHOKE HOLD!"**

Kiku ran from behind and choked Gilbert, dragging him in the other room. Charice pushed them into the next room, the others following suit. Once there, Kiku let him go. Gilbert stretched his neck as he turned his head toward Ludwig in his Holy Rome form. He pouted.

"Yes, bruder…it's me."

"Wha-wha-hey-huh…**HAH?"** Gilbert took a deep breath. "What the _**HELL**_ happened to you?"

"**Arthur** happened to me…that's what." Ludwig spat.

"S-so you came all the way _**here?"**_ Gilbert stated. "Dude, that's totally unawesome!"

"Hey, **dude**, this in _**ITSELF**_ is unawesome _(with the exception of Doitsu-ki being cuddly :D)!"_ Charice pointed out. "But really, _**DON'T REMARK IT OUT LOUD!"**_

"…you're screaming, Charice."

"Right…thanks, Nihon-san." She cleared her throat. _"But really, you can't say his name out loud!"_

"And why the heck not?" Gilbert tilted his head.

"_**DUH**_…_Feli-chan is here too!"_

(O_O)"

"_Yeah! And he doesn't know that they're the __**SAME**__ person, so kindly SHUT IT!"_

"No problem, no problem! This is Ita-chan we're talking about!" Gilbert stated. "But seriously, West…what the hell got Arthur riled up against you?"

"According to what kuya told me, it was about six bottles of beer, a cheeseburger and a joint." Charice paused. "And a half."

"…that's scary to think."

"I know…" Charice sighed. "To think…Iggy-kun and a cheeseburger."

(-_-)"

"Enough about that…it would explain why I couldn't contact you." Gilbert lifted up his phone. "Seriously, West…I've been trying to call you this entire day!"

"I must've left my phone at home." Ludwig said.

"Good reason. If you answered as you are now, just imagine what people might think." Kiku chuckled. "No one could take you seriously."

"Thanks, Kiku…"

Everyone sat there in a strange blank form of silence until they heard footsteps echoing from behind them. Ludwig turned around and saw that Feliciano had entered the room, the same derp look on his face as before. He and Gilbert made eye contact, and he chirped.

"Ah! Gilbert! You came to visit!" He chirped again. "What good timing! Holy Rome came back!"

"I-I can see that!" He pointed to him. "Almost tripped on the little guy!"

…_little guy?_

"I was just about to ask him, too! How'd he survive all these years?"

"I…I had memory loss." Ludwig answered, trying to act as if they weren't bickering like brothers a second ago. "It made me fall off the map for a while…but I remember a good deal of them now…"

"You…remember stuff?" Gilbert looked generally surprised. Like he never heard that before.

"…yes…while I was in the library, Kiku happened to find something of mine…" He turned to the others. "M-may I have some time alone…with him?"

No one knew how to respond, save _(of course)_ for Charice. She casually shooed them out of the room…which was translated to something similar to whacking them away with a broom in her hand_ (wait, how in the world did she get a BROOM?)_, leaving the both of them alone. Kiku casually slipped him the diary before leaving, making Feliciano even more confused.

"W-what is that, Holy Rome…?"

"…it's my old diary." He answered. "It helped me remember some things, but…not all of them…"

"Oh…I see…"

"…w-would you like to read this with me…?"

"O-of course!"

**/=[ONE LONG READING LATER…]=/**

Ludwig couldn't help but look up at Feliciano's shocked face the entire time, reading the young country's inner thoughts and darkest secrets for the first time in two thousand years. After he read the final statement over and over again, he turned toward the young man in his lap.

"…d-do you remember your human name…?" He asked.

"It's Heilrich, Italy." He answered. "My name is Heilrich…I wanted to tell you, but…"

"No, it's all right…" Feliciano smiled. "In fact, let me tell you my human name…it's Feliciano Vargas."

"Feliciano…it sounds so manly…" Heilrich chuckled. "Maybe I should've known this sooner…"

"Would…would anything change between the both of us if you knew…?"

Ludwig could see the hurt in Feliciano's eyes, the thought of one thing changing someone's opinion on them destructing in his mind. Without even thinking, he reached out to touch his cheek. Being small and with stubby arms, he was only able to graze it lightly. And he was really trying, too.

"No…no, of course not." He answered truthfully. "Nothing would change. I would still love you…Feliciano."

The Italian gave him a weird look on his face, like he said something weird, but then ignored it. After a few minutes, they heard a chime of a bell. They looked up and realized that _oh wow_, it was already late at night. Almost on cue, Elizabeta came out of nowhere and knocked on the door.

"Time for bed, kids." She chuckled. "You want separate rooms?"

"Y-yes…" Ludwig answered. "I-I might get smothered if I stay with someone else…"

"B-but you don't want to sleep with me?"

He felt a lot of blood rushing everywhere in his system. _Mental Note: __**NEVER HANG OUT WITH FRANCE ANYMORE.**_

"U-um…"

"Ahahaha…don't worry, Feliciano. He'll get enough height to share a bed with you." Elizabeta chuckled. "Here, I'll show you your old room."

He was led by Elizabeta through Austria's winding hallways before settling on a small room. She opened it and he walked in, surprised that it was indeed his old one. He looked around and felt as if he had walked back home without anything changing…with the exception of a few curtain drapes and the bed sheets.

"We tried leaving everything the same as before, so…you might feel at home a lot easier."

"…thank you."

She closed the door behind him as he settled down on the bed. It was surprisingly soft, making him a lot more comfortable. He snuggled with one of the pillows, feeling the softness against his skin…and realized that he was so small that he could literally _**sleep**_ on that one pillow. He made sure Charice wasn't around _(god knows what she'll do in her Cute-Obsession mode)_ before finally settling down to sleep.

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Ludwig? It's me again. I hope you're doing well, since you're not calling me back, but…if you can hear me…I just wanted to say good night…so, good night Ludwig."

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

His eyelids started getting fried by the morning light, causing him to turn his head and moan as he lifted his hand up to block the sunlight.

_Wait a minute…_

He opened his eyes and realized that his hand had somehow gotten bigger. He sat up and realized that his whole outfit had grew with him. Suddenly, he began to panic. _Did he turn into normal…?_ Before he knew it, he flipped the covers off and took a huge glance toward the mirror.

He had just aged three years, over night.

**/=+=/**

**Having fun~?**


	7. Waking Up In the Morning

**So…Ludwig ages overnight! Maybe it's because Arthur's getting sober or something! Whatever, let's see what happens next~!**

**/=+=/**

Ludwig stared at the mirror for what felt like eternity. What the heck was he supposed to do at a time like this? He couldn't just walk out of there as he was now. It'll give poor Feliciano a heart attack! He's obviously not smart enough to catch the connection between the Holy Rome now and then, but really. Even then it would be disastrous.

"Holy Rome?" Crap, it was Elizabeta at the door. "Are you awake?"

"Um…yeah, I'm awake! I'll be with you!"

He froze. God dammit! Not only did he grow a few inches and aged a few years, now his **VOICE** dropped! Sure, he didn't sound that close to what he sounds like as Germany…but still, that's a pretty huge jump! Like an _**ITALY MIGHT FIND OUT IF HE'S NOT CAREFUL**_ kind of jump.

"H-Holy Rome? Are you OK in there…?"

"Um…I don't feel any different."

It was then that he realized that the door was not locked. That was indicated when he turned around and realized that Elizabeta had actually opened up the door to let herself in. She stared at his aged form before her eyes before laughing a little bit and sounded a little depressed.

"_Aw man…and here I thought I was going to see Feliciano holding you…"_

"Eh?"

"Nothing, nothing…so you've aged a bit…"

"I…did." Ludwig quickly thought up a solution. "It might be because of my former territory…?"

"What makes you say that?"

"A nation is connected to our respective country, am I right? And my former territory is now a country." He said. "How is my land doing?"

"Well…other than us, it has broken down into certain others…oh, but the strongest one is Deutschland!"

"Deutschland?" He tried to keep his innocent look. "Oh, I heard Charice talking about it. Wasn't it also called Germany?"

"Yes, of course! The Federal Republic of Germany is part of the G8 and the G20 of the world!"

"…meaning?" He couldn't help but wonder if Elizabeta knew what it meant.

"Oh, I'm sorry…it's a modern term used these days. I mean that your former territory is one of the eight strongest and most flourishing countries in the world!"

He couldn't help but beam at that statement. He hasn't been told that he was a powerful country since the beginning of World War II. This ended up throwing a huge cheesy grin on his face and a chuckle. Maybe he got his cockiness back from his teenage years…

"This…Germany that you speak of…what type of man is he?" He asked.

"He's by-the-book and very stern in his actions…" Elizabeta nodded. "He had watched over Italy for quite some time since you had left."

"And he has done his job well, since Italy is OK now." Ludwig felt weird praising himself. "I would like to give him my thanks, if you can contact him for me."

"Actually, I haven't been able to contact him recently. I've been calling him a lot yesterday, yet he hasn't called me back…" She turned to Ludwig. "He'll call back, don't worry. And then I'll introduce you to him!"

It was then that he realized that he actually said that out loud. So much for trying to keep Germany out of the picture for a few days until he can stop semi-panicking. Doesn't this world work WONDERS on these people? Of course they don't. Fortunately, she seemed to keep herself in composure and turned to leave.

"W-wait…Hungary." He blinked. "I need to tell you something."

"Hm? What is it?"

"Um…I remembered something last night…that I wanted to tell everyone." He sighed. "My human name…my human name is Heilrich."

"You remember your human name? That's great!" She smiled. "Let me tell you mine. It's Elizabeta. And by the way, Austria's human name is Roderich~!"

"Roderich…it fits him." He smiled. "I'll be sure to use his human name more often."

"It's a common trend these days, so it's good to know that you remember yours." She smiled. "Now you should hurry up, because it's almost breakfast time and you should show Feliciano your new look~!"

"Um…F-Feliciano?"

"He's Italy, silly."

"Oh, of course! Yes, he told me this already." _He just didn't seem to comprehend coming to the breakfast table as a ten year old._

**/=+=/**

He took a lot of hesitation in his steps before he found himself going down the stairs and was face-to-face to the crowd of people that sat in the dining room. Odd enough, Kiku and Charice took the sudden change quite well. The others had looks on their faces that seemed to scream _**"HOLY MOTHER HECK, WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM?"**_

Oh wait, Gilbert actually screamed that. Nevermind, then.

"Dude, wha-?" Gilbert blinked. "What happened?"

"I aged, idiot." He spat back, feeling very powerful at this point. "Not by much, but I want to say three years."

"So you're…ten now?"

"Yes, Charice…ten." He lowered his spoon. "I speculated that it had to do something with the fact that my former territory has been separated into fully functioning countries with their own political power, hence it allowed me to profit from their achievements."

Charice turned her head and noticed that Feliciano seemed to be a little sad at the mention of "countries". She needed to change the subject.

"So, Holy Rome…if you're aging at such a rapid pace right now because of your former territories being extremely rich and powerful, then why haven't you aged rapidly in the past few years?"

He paused as he looked at the confused look on her face. Sure, this was something to be expected of the small Asian nation and the fact that she questions just about everything that seems to have rhetorical meaning, but this was definitely not something that he had thought of. Could he throw out an "I-don't-know" and be done with it?

"If I would have to venture a guess, it might be connected to his memories." Kiku stated calmly, eating with chopsticks that he conveniently packed. "Since he had gone through the last few centuries without his memories, he could not age properly. Only by achieving a fair amount of them allowed him to finally age."

"I…see what he is talking about." Ludwig sighed. Leave it to Kiku to save his behind. "That means that I must have a fairly decent amount of memories that I remember."

"Speaking of which, Holy Rome…" Elizabeta smiled. "Isn't there something you wanted to tell the others about…?"

"Ah, of course!" He cleared his throat. "I wish to tell you all that my human name is Heilrich…I remember it now…"

Everyone stared at him with a vague sense of surprise. The only one who was extremely shocked was Gilbert: apparently he was the only one in the room who had no idea who Holy Roman Empire's human name was. _**AND HE WAS THE ONE WHO RAISED HIM POST-HRE!**_ What is this…?

"Do you know my human name, Heilrich?"

"Yes, Roderich. Elizabeta had told me." Ludwig answered, eating one of Feliciano's eggs. "I must say that your name is quite fitting."

"Thank you." Roderich answered, eating normally. "Now we should go eat our breakfast in peace."

"Of course…" Ludwig looked up. "Where's Feliciano?"

"Probably still sleeping~!" Charice stood up. "I'll get him~!"

Ludwig couldn't help but feel like a cheat as she danced herself toward Feliciano's room. Sure he was lying about the whole Holy Rome thing…but he technically _was_ Holy Roman Empire. So would it be called lying or something else? What was this called…? Could he handle lying to Feliciano like this anymore…?

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Hello? Are you doing well, Ludwig? I hope so, since you haven't called me back. I wish you are doing well…and please call me back."

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**Stay tuned~! Cause we're going through the filler episode(s?) until we get somewhere!**


	8. Showing It to Italy

**More Holy Roman goodness! Maybe we'll see Feliciano's reaction to his aging. Will he be smart enough to find out the truth…? Pfft, I almost laughed at that one :D**

**/=+=/**

"Feli-kun~! It's morning~! Time to wake up~!"

Charice chirped as she skipped through the hallways toward Feliciano's room. She had to follow Elizabeta through most of the house the first day, so she sorta knew the house like the back of her hand…now, she hoped. After a few minutes, she found a door that her gut told her was his room. She was about to knock when the door flew open.

And **NO**, she did not scream.

"Ve~~~~! C-Charice! I didn't see you there!"

"I'm fine, I'm fine…we were just wondering where you were…" She said, calming her panic. "I mean, Elizabeta made our breakfast."

"Um…i-is Heilrich there…?"

"Hei-_**OH, RIGHT!**_ Of course he is!" She chirped. "He's waiting for you, by the way!"

"Ve~! I-I'll be right there!"

**/=+=/**

Feliciano and Charice chirped / skipped toward the dining hall when they finally got there. Charice backed up so that Feliciano and Heilrich could see each other in clear light. She couldn't help but snicker as Heilrich stood up and showed him the new form that he had taken last night. He stared at the black robe that somehow grew with him.

"…Heilrich? Is that…?"

"Yeah, it is." He smiled. "And yes, I did age a little bit. I hope that isn't weird for you."

"Ve~~~~it's not weird Heilrich!" Feliciano smiled. "It just means that you'll be an adult in due time!"

_Oh sh-_

He didn't think of that. If he aged back to Ludwig…it would be good because he wouldn't have to strangle Arthur, step one. But step two, _**there would be no way to talk himself out of it.**_ Even an idiot like Feliciano would realize something is wrong when someone is aging and looks _exactly_ like your best friend. Still, he had to put up a front…

"T-that would be good…" He said. "B-but that would mean I'll be an old man in about a month!"

"Ve~~~~~~! T-that won't be good!" Feliciano panicked. "W-wait a minute! We'll get Arthur to help! He might know a spell that slows down aging!"

_Or turn me back to normal if I wanted to…maybe even change my appearance…_

Heilrich sat there with a semi-blank look on his face as Feliciano chirped and started to eat his breakfast, forcing him to do the same in order to save face. He had to admit, Elizabeta was a good cook and seemed to know his old favorite. It was then that he realized that there was wurst on the plate.

"Oh…you have wurst."

"Eh?" She looked up. "You…don't like it?"

"No, I like it. I just didn't know that…we had it." He ate it. "It's good…after all this time."

"Thank you~!" She turned her head. "It's Feliciano's favorite, so I had to make it!"

"E-eh?"

"Of course it is~! It's very chewy and juicy too, so sometimes I suck on it to get the juice out!"

And there Feliciano was, sucking on a German sausage like it was the juiciest thing on the planet.

…

He fainted.

**/=+=/**

"H-Heilrich! Are you all right?"

His eyes flickered open, revealing that he had fallen onto the cold tile floor of the dining room. He looked around and saw Kiku and Feliciano's worried faces looking back down at him, and he couldn't help but remember this exact same incident that happened after World War II…when he was defeated…

"_Yeah…just got a little light-headed."_ He sat up slowly.

"W-wait! Don't rush yourself!" Feliciano panicked. "You need to slow down."

Heilrich turned his head around and saw Feliciano's hands holding onto his shoulder, a look of fear on his face. He had never seen him this scared before, back when he was Germany. No…he was terrified right now. He turned back to his hands before lightly smiling.

"I'm fine, Feliciano. Don't worry about me." He answered. "Sorry for scaring you."

He smiled and lightly chuckled, making Heilrich's heart flutter inside itself. He had never seen Feliciano smile like that when he was Germany. Was it because he was Holy Roman Empire and not Germany anymore? They spent fairly the same amount of time together, so what made Heilrich different…?

"Heilrich? Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine." He smiled. "I'm just hungry. Is my food still here?"

**/=+=/**

"Ah West, you're growing up! At least you got the innuendo~!"

"Shut up, bruder…"

"Though I'm surprised that you passed out from that! I was expecting you to have a nosebleed at that time!"

"_**Shut up, bruder…"**_

Gilbert couldn't help but laugh like a nutcase, making Heirich blush and look away. Thank gott that they were alone, else someone would've remarked about how annoying his laugh was _(especially Rizal. Apparently they had a rivalry going on…)_. He ended up sighing and rubbing his forehead.

"But hey, guess what? Feliciano says he wants that bushy brow weirdo to help you!" He grinned. "Which means you're going back to being the muscly tall dude that I love drinking with soon!"

"Yeah…that's good…"

"…you don't sound happy, dude. Let the awesome me hear this. I'll get a plan up for you~!"

"It's fine…I just got a headache from passing out." He answered, sighing. "Nothing to worry about."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

"All right then! Remember that I'm here in case you want my help after all!" He stood up. "Now I guess it's time to annoy Roderich!"

Heilrich stared at him with a blank look on his face as Gilbert stood up and ran out of the room with a weird look on his face. Sighing, he leaned back on the couch and was a bit surprised that he was able to lean back and extend his arms out to hold the top of the couch.

_I've never seen Feliciano smile like that before…_ He thought. _Back when I was Germany…argh, why is this bothering me? This isn't like me at all!_

He sighed as he looked up to the ceiling.

_Feliciano loved me back, didn't he? Even though he was a boy and I thought he was a girl, he still loved me._ He rolled his head. _None of that changed, even though it's been two thousand years and I'm now Germany. Those feelings will never change…_

_Both as the Holy Roman Empire and the Federal Republic of Deutschland, I will always love Italy._

"Heilrich? Are you here?"

He blinked as he saw Feliciano open the door and peek in, catching eye contact with the young man on the chair. He smiled, a light blush on his face, causing Feliciano to rub his eye and blush as well, making his heart flip over itself yet again.

_Yes…I'll always love you, Feliciano._

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

"Ludwig? Are you there…? Ludwig…? …all right. Call me back."

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**I love ending all these chapters with this cell phone. It has a picture of Italy sleeping on a couple of heart pillows :D**


	9. Italy's Secret

**More chapters to come around on. Last time we checked, Heilrich had a bit of an emotional breakthrough before he saw Feliciano coming through. Now what? Oh yeah, by the way, with Hetalia: the Fantasy Story completed, expect faster updates!**

**/=+=/**

"Ve~~~there you are, Heilrich! I was looking for you!"

"You were?" He blushed, sitting up. "W-what did you want from me?"

"I…wanted to hang out with you today." He answered, mumbling like he was a girl. "Since we didn't have time yesterday…and we have a lot to catch up on."

"Yeah…we do." Heilrich smiled. "All the time in the world…"

**/=+=/**

Feliciano led him out of the building and toward the gardens in the back of the manor. He looked around and felt memories slowly pass through his mind like an old film. Back when he was learning how to paint…when he was confronting him about his grandfather…all of the dreams that he had with him…

"Ve~~~~over here, Heilrich!"

He looked up and saw Feliciano waving him over to a hill. He quickly followed him and found himself standing next to the Italian staring at the Austrian's manor and the trees that surrounded them. He turned his head and saw Feliciano smiling at the view.

"Remember this place, Heilrich…?"

"Yes, I do." He turned around. "This was when you told me about your grandfather and how you loved me even though I was still a small country."

"You…remember?"

"I was so naïve then…I had no idea what kept you back from taking my offer and how you really cared for me." Heilrich blushed. "I-I wondered if you loved me after that day…"

"I didn't love you then…I loved you so many times before." Feliciano smiled. "When I learned just how kind and generous you really are…and that you're not just a country that wanted power…I found myself being attracted to you in so many ways…"

Part of Heilrich's brain was screaming in happiness / shock / just _screaming_. It was a love confession. _**A LOVE CONFESSION!**_

"But I knew that most of your people were Catholic and that love between two boys was deeply shunned. I wanted to tell you that I was a man, but…I still loved you, and I didn't know what you would think if I told you…" He looked away, still blushing. "Before I knew it, you had gone to war…and you never came back…I was so worried that you were gone. I started wishing that I had told you…just so that I knew your answer…"

Heilrich paused in shock: Feliciano seemed to be at the verge of crying. His feet jumped, and he hugged him with all his might. The Italian yelped in shock.

"_It doesn't matter, Feliciano…it doesn't matter now."_ He whispered. _"I love you in every entity that you exist in. I love you, Chibitalia. I love you, Italy Veneziano…and I love you, Feliciano…"_

"…_are you sure…?"_

"_I would never lie to you…you don't deserve to be lied to."_ He cringed at those words. _"You deserve the truth."_

Feliciano started to cry in his hands as Heilrich found himself in a bit of a doozy. He had just said the most ironic thing in the world: Feliciano deserved every single bit of truth in the world, and yet here he was giving him the ultimate lie. But if he was lying just to make him happy, then what is it? And it isn't technically lying, since he was Heilrich and Ludwig at the same time…

"_Feliciano…"_ He smiled, kissing his cheek. _"Please do not worry…"_

"_Heilrich…"_

"_I love you, Feliciano. Even if you are a man."_

He couldn't help but feel pain during these words.

**/=+=/**

"So how's Rizal and Alfred doing?"

"They're still trying to find Iggy-kun. Apparently he's not calling their cell phones, so they're going to old fashioned way." She sighed. "Which means they're getting the FBI and CIA into this."

"Alfred has that much power in America?"

"He is America. And America caters to countries' needs. Since England is missing, that is important." Charice pointed out. "Think about it. America and England have a _special relationship,_ don't they?"

"Ah, true…"

Kiku and Charice chuckled at each other for a few minutes before hearing happy chirping and clomping of shoes behind them. They turned their heads around and saw a skipping Elizabeta as she started singing something Hungarian before noticing the two of them in front of her.

"Ah~! There you two are~!" She stopped. "Thank god I found someone! I finally have someone to talk about this to!"

"Uh…what happened?" Kiku blinked.

"Oh my god…_**Roddy-kun and Gil-kun made out."**_

"I wish, Charice…" Elizabeta chirped. "No, Feliciano and Heilrich confessed their love for each other!"

"_**REALLY? THAT'S **__**GREAT!**__**"**_ Charice chirped with her. "I heard around that they never did that in the last two thousand years they were apart! So it's true then?"

"Yes! And they look so cute together!"

They started fangirling squealing for a while before Elizabeta skipped back to stalk them a little more. Charice turned back from her squealing and realized that Kiku was staring at her with a semi-worried look on his face. She didn't bother to lower her grin.

"Is this wise of him?" Kiku asked.

"Of course it is, Nihon-san! Think about it: Heilrich is Ludwig, and Heilrich loves Feliciano. Ludwig still loves Feliciano, so in a sense Feliciano loves Ludwig!" She grinned. "So Ludwig just confessed his love for Feliciano and he said it was mutual! It's the best thing on the planet since Yong-kun showed me _'Bonamana' __[1]__!"_

"But Feliciano still thinks he's just Holy Roman Empire." Kiku said. "He's only talking about him, not Doitsu."

"I'm talking about Doitsu-ki, Nihon-san~!" She chirped. "Besides, they're the same person! Feliciano loves the same person, duh~!"

"_You're so naïve, Charice. Here I thought that you would be wiser because of your age__[2]__…"_ Kiku said. "Feliciano thinks of them as two different people. Even if they are the same, there's a chance that he thinks of them differently. It's possible for people to love one aspect of a person but not the other one. Think of Antonio, Charice. Do you prefer the one now or the one that squeezed you and your brother dry?"

She paused.

"You must understand the depth of what his problem is. Despite the fact that they are in fact one and the same, Ludwig knows that Feliciano sees them differently. He wants to know the truth before he figures out what he can do." Kiku stated. "He's just a military tactician this way. For all we know, you could be right about this."

"…Doitsu-ki will figure it out. He'll learn that Feli-chan loves him, too." Charice said. "But is it OK to keep this a secret from him? That they're the same?"

"He won't allow us to tell him. He's just trying to protect Feliciano." Kiku stated. "For now, all we can do is make sure that he has all the help he needs."

"Help? For what?"

"Well…in case you do turn out to be right."

**/=+=/**

Heilrich found himself having the time of his life, following Feliciano all over the place and reliving the travels of his past. He never found himself laughing so much before, even when he was a child under Gilbert's care. Was it because he was with Feliciano? Because he had let hidden emotions let themselves out after so long…?

"Ve~~~~are you all right, Heilrich?"

"I'm sorry…I just can't remember laughing like this in a long time…"

The both of them were looking at the night sky above. It was extremely blessing today, shining countless of stars down upon them and bathing them in starlight. He flipped to his side and saw Feliciano smiling back at him, making his heart do multiple flipflops.

"You look…beautiful…" Heilrich said, blushing.

"Ve~~~~thank you…"

The both of them were lying down there, blushing in each other's presence, just inches away from kissing each other yet again yet too shy to do so. After a few minutes, Heilrich's eyes flipped to the side with a sad look on his face, startling him.

"…Feliciano. About my territory…"

"Ve~? W-what about it?"

"…I heard from Elizabeta that it's doing just fine, am I correct?"

"Of course! So many countries came out of it, and all of them are very prosperous in their own ways!"

"Yes, and all of this led to my rapid aging." He couldn't believe he was bringing this up. "She then told me…about this man called Germany."

That phrase made Feliciano pause.

"If…you don't mind me asking…what is he like?" Heilrich looked terrified to ask this question. "He…hasn't hurt you, has he?"

"No…of course he hasn't. Don't worry, Heilrich."

He looked up and saw that the smile had crept back on Feliciano's face, making his heart flip all the faster. He sat up, leaving the blond on the grass. Heilrich could see the moonlight shining off his skin. If he hadn't known any better, he would've thought he was an angel.

"Germany is…well, Ludwig is…a trained man. He's tried to protect me countless of times, even going so far as to teach me how to use modern weaponry~!"

"H-he didn't hurt you there, did he?" Heilrich panicked. He didn't know why. He was Ludwig, right? He should know this…

"No…he didn't hurt me. He's saved me so many times that…I can't help but be grateful for all those times…he's a well-trusted friend…but…"

He cringed. He knew the word _"but"_ was never going to bring good news.

"…but I feel so evil around him…like I'm the one using him in the end…" Feliciano frowned.

"Using him…?" Heilrich sat up. "What do you mean…?"

"…Germany looks almost exactly like you, Heilrich. When we first met, I…I was so scared of him…but when I realized that you two looked so alike, I found myself clinging onto him like I was going to lose you again…" Feliciano looked away. "I feel so horrible…he trusts me as a friend, but…I was just using him this whole time…as a replacement for losing you…"

His heart stopped.

"I'm so horrible, Heilrich! How could I use him like that?" He sobbed. "Germany doesn't deserve that…Ludwig doesn't deserve that…"

Heilrich's eyes were twitching in shock now. He got his answer now. He knew the truth. There was only one thing he can do now. Slowly, he lifted up a hand and caressed Feliciano's chin, making the other nation look up with tears in his eyes.

"_Feliciano…he'll understand. If he knows you as well as I do, he'll forgive you for everything."_

"…_do you…really think so, Heilrich?"_

"…I know so." _Because I already have._

Feliciano looked at him with eyes that reminded him of a lost child before throwing a huge bear hug on him, almost throwing them over. But he kept his balance, allowing him to sob freely on his chest, trying to pretend that he didn't need to do the same thing.

"_Everything's going to be OK, Feliciano…everything's going to be OK…"_

The crying slowly subsided, allowing them to look at each other yet again. It was then that they heard someone calling them. They looked up and saw it was Roderich, calling them to dinner. Feliciano stood up and smiled.

"We should…go eat. I'm getting hungry."

"…yeah…"

Deep down inside…he wanted to cry.

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so-]*~**_

'_click'_

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**~*BEEP*~**

**/=+=/**

**[1] ****In case anyone was wondering, **_**Bonamana**___**is a Korean song by the popular band Super Junior. Their music video is very addicting, and if you're just as addicted to Hetalia as I am, you will **_**not**_** find yourself seeing the war-torn nations dancing to them. Really, you won't :D**

**[2] ****If we take the modern Germany's age as regards to the German Empire **_**(also known as the Second Reich)**_**, it would put his actual age at roughly 140 years old. In the other hand, Charice's age would be accounted for when Spain took her and Rizal in as a colony, making her age at least 446 years old. Rizal, on the other hand, is credited to when they declared independence, making his age to be 113 years old. If intelligence came with age, I can't help but wonder who switched them up…**

**All right…who's happy? No? Here, look at the pretty picture on Ludwig's phone!**

**http:/ www. zerochan. net /222436**

**No? Still depressed?**


	10. What His Final Choice Will Be

**So apparently everyone's depressed now? OK, whatever. I'm doing updates~! Be happy that I do fast updates~ :D**

**/=+=/**

Kiku watched as Feliciano came walking in with a chirp in his voice, jumping toward Gilbert and Elizabeta and walking into the kitchen without a care in the world. He turned his head around and saw Heilrich walking into the house with his head down and at the verge of crying.

"Ludwig…"

"_I know the truth now."_

"Pardon me?"

"_Everything…Feliciano trusted me only because I looked like my former self."_ He looked up. _"He thought I was a good second place for Holy Roman Empire…"_

"Ludwig…"

"_I knew he was clingy towards people…but I never thought I would be affected like this…"_ Heilrich looked up. _"What am I supposed to do now…?"_

"…for now, let the shock sink in." Kiku answered. "We're still trying to contact Arthur, so you'll be back to normal soon enough."

Heilrich lowered his head in a small nod as Kiku led him back to the dining room. It's true that he's both Holy Roman Empire and Germany, but the fact that Feliciano chose him because of his appearance stabbed him in the heart harder than all the wars in the world combined. Nothing could compare to what he was feeling right now, not even when he lost contact with his brother for twenty-eight years _(and that hit him __**HARD**__, mind you)._

The truth is, he began to question whether or not he should even turn back.

**/=+=/**

He collapsed on the bed in his room, looking up to the cold dark ceiling that seemed to mock him. This morning, he had been told that the man he truly loved had loved him back. That evening, he had been told that his true identity had been used by Feliciano to fill in a hole in his heart.

He can't tell if he should be happy or depressed.

_Feliciano, I understand why you did this. Being in love means trying your best to fill in the gap in your life…_ Heilrich turned his head. _But this is my problem now…what am I going to do?_

The both of them loved Feliciano. Feliciano only loved one of them. He couldn't tell if his heart was jumping for joy or ripping itself apart. All he knew was that he was going to cry about something that was stirring deep inside his immortal soul. Who was he now? Who does he want to be now…?

_Ludwig, what are you doing? What are you going to tell your boss? You can't let your emotions get the best of you…you have to work this out…you have to turn back to normal…_

He could imagine it now: him back to normal walking into the meeting halls and doing important jobs as if nothing has changed. But on the other side, Feliciano would be crying nonstop. Why wouldn't he be: he had just confessed his heart and soul to Holy Roman Empire and he was just going to disappear on him…?

No, he couldn't do that. He just couldn't.

Feliciano did not deserve that. He never did.

But if he were to consider the other possibility, if he were to stay Holy Roman Empire for the rest of his days, his country would suffer…or would it? He hasn't heard any news from his boss about anything major happening in Deutschland that needed his attention immediately, and by the looks of it, the younger nations are the ones developing at a faster rate. And Feliciano would still be happy, right…?

_He would still be happy…but would I…?_

That was the night that he had cried himself to sleep.

**/=+=/**

He had no idea how, but two days had passed since that day. He had been with Feliciano for quite some time, and he couldn't help but be happy about each moment. Just yesterday, in fact, Feliciano had tried to teach him how to paint again. Since he had tried this before while he was Ludwig, it was somewhat easy for him to know what he was talking about.

"Hahaha…you still can't draw, even after all this time."

"I'm trying, Feliciano…" He stressed. "I just don't have the talent you have…"

"Ve~~~you'll get it eventually! We have all the time in the world!"

_Yes…yes we do…_

Heilrich smiled at Feliciano as he started painting the daisies in front of him. He recalled that they were the national flower of Italy, just as beautiful as he was. No…those flowers were nothing compared to Feliciano's beauty. Nothing can be close to him. Nothing…

"Ve~~~!"

"E-eh? What?"

He looked down and realized that he had just written Veneziano in the most cursive looking writing in the world. It wouldn't be bad if it hadn't been for one thing: he wrote it in exactly Ludwig's handwriting. He froze and panicked, causing Feliciano to laugh. It was a calming laugh.

"Your handwriting has improved, Heilrich~!"

"Yeah…I had experience." _Phew, that was close._

**/=+=/**

Feliciano had volunteered to make lunch with Kiku and Charice. Of course Heilrich had to come along, since he knew how to cook a little bit and they wanted German food today. As Feliciano and Charice worked hard on their food, he felt his OCD annoy him from the bowels of his mind. Before he knew it, he found himself cleaning everything and anything that the both of them had touched. Kiku couldn't help but laugh at Heilrich's attempts to hold himself back.

"Ve~~~~you're so clean, Heilrich!"

"I-it's a bad habit, isn't it?" He said, completely embarrassed.

"I don't think it's that bad~!" Charice laughed. "I mean, it reminds me of Doitsu-ki a little bit!"

Everyone froze. Charice just brought up the taboo word. She stared to panic, hoping from the back of her mind that Feliciano doesn't take his name and automatically sum up everything that happened over the past three days _(cause there's always weirder things going on)_. Instead, he stared at all of them with a blank look on his face.

"Ve~? Who's Doitsu-ki?"

Everyone froze again. Heilrich almost dropped the rag he was holding. Charice looked at him in confusion.

"Doitsu-ki! You know…Ludwig? The tall German guy that you loved to cling onto?" She said, gesturing _(more like exaggerating)_ his height.

"O-oh! Doitsu! I remember now!" Feliciano laughed. "I can't believe I forgot him! Sorry."

Heilrich just wanted to cry right then and there. But he held himself back, choked back a sob, and continued to let his OCD run him to the extreme. It was the only distraction that seemed to be working.

**/=+=/**

The next day, Heilrich found himself waking up earlier than everyone else in the house. He found himself chuckling like a child, deciding that he was going to treat everyone with something he never did before: make some cupcakes. Sure, it was embarrassing when he was Ludwig, but he could pull it off as Heilrich, right?

He snuck down to the kitchen and quickly got down to work, finding himself in a strange sense of childish glee that he was going to do something for Feliciano _(he already knew that Charice was going to be ecstatic about the sound of sweets)_. Before the first riser even came up, he had already finished it: chocolate cake, German style.

"My goodness, Doitsu…did you sleep at all last night?"

"Eh? Oh, Kiku!" He turned around. "Of course I did. I woke up early and I couldn't go back to sleep, so I decided to make an early dessert."

"And you OCD'ed all over the kitchen too. I wasn't expecting anything less out of you, Ludwig." Kiku took a small taste. "It's not bad. I can't wait to hear the other's reactions when-"

"_**CAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKKEEEEEEE!"**_

He didn't have too. Charice plastered herself on the doorway with a hungry look on her face, scaring the poor German out of his body and back again. The others came in slowly afterward, wondering just what in the world was screaming like a nutcase. That's when they saw the cake.

"**YES! CAKE FOR BREAKFAST! **This is almost as awesome as me~!" Gilbert grabbed a taste and began devouring his piece.

"Ve~~~? Who's screaming…?" Feliciano peeked in. "What's going on?"

"Heilrich made us cake~!" Elizabeta chirped.

"Aw yeah! Total German awesomeness!" Gilbert grinned. "Just as good as West's cake!"

"W-West? Who's that?"

Everyone turned their heads to Feliciano, who had a completely serious look on his face. Heilrich's face fell yet again.

"Doitsu-ki, Feliciano~!" Charice stated. "Ludwig~!"

"…o-oh yeah…" He remembered. "I can't believe I forgot again…"

Kiku turned his head toward Heilrich, who held his head and rubbed his forehead in worry. This wasn't happening to him, was it?

**/=+=/**

That night, he found himself sitting down on the hills, looking up to the star-riddled sky above him. He heard footsteps behind him, but he didn't bother to turn his head to see Roderich standing right next to him. He had a serious look on his face.

"Feliciano forgets everything, you know." He stated. "Don't let it trouble you."

"But he never forgot me before." Ludwig turned his head. "Why is it bothering me now…?"

"Because you still love him." Roderich looked away. "I remember acting similar to you right now, when my marriage with Elizabeta was annulled."

"How did you get over it…?"

"…I haven't. It still hurts, even now."

They both sat there in silence, staring at the sky and thinking about how their immortal lives had found thousands of ways of screwing them over. After a while, Heilrich sat up and looked down to his hands.

"Feliciano would surly get hurt if you turned back to normal."

"…_I know…"_

"But your standing with the other nations would suffer if you stayed in this form."

"…_I know…"_

"So it all comes down to wondering what do you want. No one can hold that against you."

"…_I want Feliciano to be happy."_

"Even at the cost of your nation…?"

"_My nation will not suffer. Everyone knows that Germany will rise from the thousands of ashes that it has burned up into…"_ He looked up. "I will stay."

"Stay as…?"

"…Holy Roman Empire." Ludwig answered. "I will stay as Holy Roman Empire, for Feliciano's sake."

"And what if Feliciano misses you…?"

"He has me now. He won't miss Ludwig…"

"And what if you're wrong…?"

"…we have all of eternity to find out."

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ring*~**

**~*Ri-**

_**~*[Hello. This is Ludwig's cell phone at 732-***-****. I'm not available right now, so please leave your name and message after the beep. I'll make it my upmost duty to return your call when I can.]*~**_

**~*BEEP*~**

_*sob*_

_*sob sob*_

"Ludwig…? Are you there…? It's been four whole days and you haven't answered…where are you…?"

"_Ludwig…where are you…?"_

**/=+=/**

Kiku walked through the hallways with his blanket in hand, ready to just call it the night. He had way too much going on and since Alfred and Rizal were still unable to locate Arthur, it was another day of turmoil for the poor German nation. For some reason, Feliciano doesn't seem to be remembering his other friend.

_None of this makes any sense. Was it not a few decades ago that the three of us had walked together in war, willing to die for each other?_ He looked up. _Since when did he suddenly forget everything about him…?_

He passed Feliciano's door and found it to be cracked open slightly. As he approached it, he was surprised to hear that someone was crying in the inside. He took a slow peek inside and found Feliciano sitting at the side of the bed, crying in the sheets unable to speak.

And in his hand was an open cell phone.

**/=+=/**

**This is going to be the shorter of my fanfiction, so if you hadn't realized it, I'm already nearing my end~! Does any of this feel rushed to you? Tell me, and I'll slow it down. I got a Plan B, you know :D**


	11. The Fairy Tale Story

**What are we all to do? Feliciano is clearly distressed and Ludwig…no, Heilrich had chosen his answer. Now what are we going to do? We're nearing the end, boys and girls. And I'm surprised. This has to rank up to being one of my popular ones. 71 reviews in nine chapters? Never had a ratio that big before!**

**/=+=/**

Kiku quietly knocked on the door, alarming the Italian inside. Feliciano turned his head and hid the phone, only to see Kiku at the door. Once he saw him, Feliciano turned away, not even bothering to hide his phone. Kiku walked in, closing the door behind him, allowing the Italian to jump him.

"_Kiku…he hasn't answered back…"_

"Who…Ludwig?"

"_It's been four days, Kiku…he hasn't even tried to send me a message. I know him…he would at least call me back to know he was all right…"_ Feliciano looked up. _"W-was he at the meeting in Germany when you went there…?"_

"Y-yes, he was. He was also given a lot of work and was supposed to go to a lot of meetings." Kiku lied. "You shouldn't be worrying about him…"

"_But Kiku…I can't help but be worried…"_ He cried. _"W-what if he's hurt? What if he needs my help…?"_

Kiku couldn't help but shiver at those statements. Ludwig was hurt, just not physically. What could he tell Feliciano without telling him the truth…? He closed his eyes and tried thinking like Charice. She had enough motherly qualities to figure out what he could do. That's when he knew what to do.

"You should get some sleep, Feli." Kiku said. "That way you can clear your mind to think this out tomorrow…"

"_But I can't sleep…Ludwig's out there…he needs me…"_

"I have an idea…" Kiku grinned. "I'll tell you a bedtime story."

"Ve~~~will you, Kiku?"

"I probably won't be as good as Doitsu, but I will try my best." He smiled. "Let's see…"

**/=+=/**

_Once upon a time, in a kingdom far far away, there lived a young prince. He and his father, the king, ruled over the kingdom with wise words. In result, the kingdom prospered. One day, the prince had come of age and he was to choose a bride. There were thousands of women he could choose from, ranging from duchesses to princesses to powerful queens. Even with those choices, he chose only one woman: his servant, his faithful friend._

_On that day, he brought her to the gardens from where they first met. He remembered each and every detail of that day: his father's faithful knight had brought her to his kingdom as a payment from a duke of a losing kingdom. She was so scared of everything, especially him, but after a while he had gotten her to open her heart. And that day, he had opened his._

"**But why do you want me?"** _She asked him. _**"I am just a lowly servant. You have choices between beautiful queens and duchesses. What about Duchess Alice? She is beautiful."**

"**Yes, she is beautiful…"**_ He answered with a smile. _**"But nowhere near beautiful as you."**

_He took his hand and asked her yet again to be his wife. This time, she said yes._

**/=+=/**

"Ve~~~you're a good storyteller, Kiku."

"I try my best." He laughed. "But please, let me continue."

**/=+=/**

_However, their happy ending would not last. War had brewed up from another kingdom, ruled by a power-hungry king. Both the king and the prince declared war on him to keep his forces from charging into the kingdom. The day he was to leave, the servant gave him her locket: the only token of the father she had been separated from._

"**That way, you will have to come back to me."**_ She said. _**"Because I want this back."**

"**I will come back for you. Don't you worry…"**

_And with a final kiss and a wave, he had gone off to war._

_Months had long passed since that day, and there were still no word from them. Soon, she had received word from the messenger: the king had fallen in battle, the prince had gone missing, and yet the forces had been driven back. The kingdom was in a state of turmoil. The opposing forces had been subdued, yet there was no king or prince to celebrate their victory. In peril, they had turned toward their final resolve: the king's advisor, who was a cruel and heartless man. He ruled with a cruel and heartless fist, knowing that no one can oppose him._

_However, there was only one thing that he was missing: a queen to hold his heir._

**/=+=/**

"Ve~! This advisor man is really mean!"

"He is. But you haven't seen the last of his cruelty."

**/=+=/**

_It was only then that he remembered of the servant girl and her father's high ranking from another kingdom. She was a perfect choice to be his bride: with the right social ranking and heir to her father's name. However, when he first asked her, she had rejected him just as she had rejected the prince before. No matter how many times he had asked her and showered her with gifts, ranging from beautiful flowers to exotic lands from his territories, nothing seemed to win her heart. _

_The next day, she had been tending the gardens of her childhood when she met a young man. He had claimed himself to be a wandering swordsman, wishing for a place to stay for the night. She knew that the king was cruel to strangers but knew that he meant no harm, so she hid him away in a hut near the edge of town where he could easily slip away as quickly and silently as he slipped in. She didn't know how, but she found herself drawn to this man. He was a good new light, compared to the king and his advances._

_That night, she had been late to return to the castle. This of course prompts the interest of the cruel king, who knew perfectly well that she was always back on curfew. But when she was interrogated, she only stated that the townspeople had a small birthday party and she was invited to it. He wouldn't buy it, but knew that it would be all that she would say. She had been hiding something, and he wanted to know what._

**/=+=/**

"D-does this have a happy ending…?"

"Perhaps. Or maybe not. You'll have to keep listening to find out."

"…you sound like a narrator…"

**/=+=/**

_The next day, to her utter surprise, she had learned that the wandering swordsman has decided to stay in the city for the week. He said that the security around the boarders had increased and that he was unable to leave, and plus he liked the beauty that the city had to offer. She didn't know why she was smiling the whole time._

_For the next few days, the trend became this: she would leave the castle early in the morning and meet with the wanderer, and return on her curfew. During their talks, it was revealed that he could not remember anything past waking up in a prison cell. The prison was soon liberated and he was free to leave, yet his memory was still in shambles._

"**For some reason, this place…brings a sense of familiarity…like I have been here before…"**

"**Stay as long as you wish."**_ She told him. _**"But please hide yourself from the king. God knows what he would do to you."**

"**I am not afraid of him…but for your sake, I will hide."**

_That was the day she fell in love, all over again. However, she still felt tied toward the late prince, and rejected those newly found feelings. With each passing day, that became harder and harder to do. It soon became obvious that even the king knew that something was wrong._

_One night, he had cornered her to give her the crown yet again. Like each time, she rejected his advance. That was when he decided to play his trump card._

"**Do you still wish for the prince's return? My dear lady, please understand me."** _He said. _**"You can't wish for the dead to return to life."**

"**The prince is not dead, my lord."**

"**He hasn't returned for ten years, my lady. If he really was alive, he would have returned to you already."** _He caressed her hair. _**"Please understand…it is time to move on."**

_He gave her the option to be his queen yet again. This time, she said yes._

**/=+=/**

"Ve~~~! Why did she say yes? She still loves the prince, and what of the wanderer?"

"This is her way of moving on. Her heart has been so burdened that she can no longer handle standing on again." Kiku smiled. "But there is so much more…"

**/=+=/**

_The next day, she forced herself to tell the wanderer about her marriage to the king. He looked hurt at the mention of it, but knew deep in his heart that she did not want this to happen. He took her hand and asked her why she said yes after all this time. Her heart broke apart and she spilled out the story of the kingdom: from the king's war to her engagement to the prince. She was going to be a queen no matter what._

"**You cannot force yourself to do something that you do not wish to do."**

"**But this is for my kingdom."**_ She said. _**"I must do this so that the people can have a say in our kingdom yet again."**

"**Have you ever considered what you want…?"**

"…**I wish for the dead to come back to me. And that is impossible."**

_The wanderer sat there with a tug of sadness in his heart as he allowed her to sob openly in his chest. Yet there was nothing he could do, for he was just a wandering swordsman. He could not go in and hurt himself, for what would she think about it? He felt his heart sink._

_That night, she returned to the castle to ready herself for her wedding. The king knew that something was still holding her back, and sent out his knights to find that out. He called her into the throne, telling her that he had found a spy from a neighboring kingdom and that he was going to execute him before their marriage. She turned her head and saw that it was the wandering swordsman._

_She began to scream for his innocence, failing to touch his heart. The swordsman, touched from her concern, started fighting everyone off. After the knights were taken down, he grabbed the princess and hugged her as tight as he could. The king, crazy mad with revenge, began a one-on-one duel with him._

"**You cannot defeat the king, dear warrior!"** _The king roared._

"**Yes, I can…for I remember everything now."**

_He drew his blade, shocking everyone in the room: it held the crest of the royal family. The warrior slew the evil king, backing up and letting the rest of the memories sink into his mind. The princess, shocked that he was still alive, hugged him from behind. He smiled and held her arms._

"**I knew that you were going to come back…"**

"**And I have."**_ He turned around to see her. _**"And if the offer still stands…"**

"**I will be your queen…"**

_The prince had returned and ruled over the reborn kingdom with the same gentle hands that his father had, the queen loyal and by his side._

**/=+=/**

"The end."

Kiku turned his head and saw Feliciano's head on the pillow, thinking about the story that he had told him. The Japanese man had such a talent for telling stories.

"The wanderer was the prince all this time…"

"Yes…and she loved him both times." He answered. "Don't think too deeply into it…you just need your sleep."

He tucked him in as Kiku stood up and walked out of the room. Just as he was leaving the room, he heard a slight gasp coming from the young boy. He couldn't help but laugh softly to himself.

_My job here is done._

**/=+=/**

**Yeah. Don't worry, the story has more meaning than you might think. I didn't just waste a whole chapter on filler :D**


	12. Her Phone Call

**Next chapter~! Love all you people that stayed and read through all of this! And seriously, so many reviews in so few chapters! That's shocking!**

**/=+=/**

"I-Is that what West told you, dude?"

"Yes, he did." Roderich looked down to the book in his hand. "He's going to stay being Holy Roman Empire, for Italy's sake."

"…I thought West was the reasonable one…since when was he allowing his emotions to come over him…?"

"I don't know…but he told me that he had thought it all out and that his country will still be safe even if his form has changed." Roderich sighed. "But my thoughts are just the same as yours."

They sat there in silence for a few minutes, their thoughts losing themselves in the wind, when they heard a hard knock on the doorway. They turned their heads and _**oh crap**_, it was an angry Hungary, writhing for answers. Cause there's nothing like demanding answers than pinning Prussia toward the wall screaming like a banshee.

"_**I KNEW IT!**_ You were hiding something from me!" She screamed. "Well, what is it? Huh? _**HUH?**_ Tell me!"

"God! Geez! Get off me, woman!" Prussia squirmed.

"Not until you tell me what's going on!"

"Elizabeta. We're going to tell you."

She looked up and saw that Roderich had closed his book and lightly touched the skin on her fingers, escorting her to her feet _(and leaving a semi-traumatized Gilbert on the ground)_. He sighed and made sure that Feliciano wasn't in the area before turning back to her.

"You know of Heilrich, right?"

"Yes." She said. "Holy Roman Empire."

"And you know of Ludwig."

"Yes. He's been missing for a few days-" She froze. "Wait, wha-?"

"Yes. They are the same person." Roderich nodded. "And I don't mean on the current situation now. I mean this whole time. Holy Roman Empire is and has always been Germany."

She gasped in shock, summing everything up in her mind. No wonder they looked so similar. The blond hair, the weird way they always seem to keep it up, those blue eyes…the ones that seemed so dead and unable to have responses to…it was all because…

"Why didn't Germany go back to Italy sooner?"

"Memory loss, like any other country that is reformed into another." Roderich stated. "I want to assume that when Holy Roman Empire was dissolved into the Germany we know now, his memories were wiped as well."

"…so he remembers everything now…" Elizabeta looked up. "But why does he look like a child?"

"Charice and Kiku both think it's England's fault." Gilbert sighed, standing up and dusting himself off. "But it doesn't matter anymore. Roderich just had a chat with West and he's planning on staying that way."

"Staying as Holy Rome…?"

"He said it was for Feliciano's sake." Roderich answered. "He said he was happier that way."

Elizabeta stood there in shock, unable to respond, when she heard light footsteps walking through toward their location. They turned their heads and saw Kiku walking toward them, a smile on his face. He saw Elizabeta's face and slowly nodded.

"I'm assuming that she knows now."

"Yeah. She knows." Gilbert sighed. "And by the way, have you spoke with West yet?"

"No, but I have spoken to Feliciano." Kiku grinned. "I…read him a bedtime story for him to sleep through. I believe that it'll calm him down."

"Well, he better calm down from that, cause West ain't coming back."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Ludwig will not turn back to Germany. He's going to stay as Heilrich for the rest of his days." Roderich answered. "Just for Feliciano's sake."

"Regaining a childhood friend while losing a modern one." Kiku sighed with a sad smile. "That is the tragedy of human life, isn't it?"

Everyone nodded in agreement when they heard a crash and a surprised scream from outside. They turned their heads to see Charice jump out toward the door as if she was pushed out of the way. She was extremely startled, to say the least. She turned and saw everyone staring at them.

"What?"

"…what was that about?" Kiku asked.

"Feli-kun, that's what! I was going to turn in for the night and he shoved me out of the way!" She said. "Something about finding Heilrich to talk to him or something."

"I see." Kiku's smile returned to him.

"What was wrong with him, anyway?" She asked. "His eyes were completely red."

"He was sad…he wanted to talk to Ludwig again." Kiku stated. "At least, that's what he told me."

"Oh, even more tragic!" Elizabeta sobbed. "Ludwig was going to stay Holy Rome, wasn't he?"

"_**WHAT?**_ He's not going to turn back?"

"No. He doesn't wish to anymore."

Charice stood there in shock as everyone else nodded. She stumbled toward the wall and leaned on it, trying to comprehend the fact that Feliciano had just regained a friend and on the other hand, lost the only man that he might've loved if it hadn't been for a memory. That's when they heard the phone ring.

"Oh, that's my cell." She picked up. "Hello?"

"_Ate, it's me."_

"Ah~! Rizal!" That caught everyone's attention. "What's going on?"

"_Well, we got good news: we found Arthur."_

"…you found **WHO?"**

"…_we…found…Arthur. You know, England?"_

…

"_**YOU FOUND ENGLAND?"**_

"_Yeah. Turns out that he ended up in Florida, out of all places. Anyway, Alfred is explaining the situation to him and Arthur is preparing to turn Ludwig back to normal."_

"He's…going to turn Ludwig back to normal."

"_Yeah. Hopefully, he hasn't gone completely crazy in Roderich's house."_

"W-w-wait a minute, Rizal! There's something that I-"

"_Oh wait. England needs me. I'll call you back."_

"W-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-w-"

He hung up. Everyone stared at Charice as she slowly stared at her phone and closed it, hanging up. After she did that, she started screaming in bloody panic, scaring the hell out of Gilbert _(who was unfortunately standing next to her and hence screamed with her)_.

"W-what's wrong?" Roderich asked.

"They. Found. Arthur." She took a deep breath. _**"And they're turning him back to normal."**_

"W-when?" Elizabeta asked.

"_**NOW.**__**"**_

"N-now?" West jumped. "But didn't you just say that Feliciano is just going to meet up with him?"

"_**THAT'S WHY I'M PANICKING, DAMMIT!**_ If Feliciano sees Ludwig when he's transforming, he might never forgive him!"

"And if Heilrich were to suddenly disappear and Ludwig to suddenly appear…" Elizabeta blinked.

"_**I'M TRYING TO CALL HIM, RELAX!"**_ Charice screamed. _**"ABORT! ABORT! ABORT MISSION!"**_

"You're not even calling him."

"**Don't rush me!"**

"You know…" Kiku blinked, smiling. "If you're that worried about him, maybe you should go find Heilrich before Feliciano and hide him until his transforms?"

…

"I'm up for that."

And the whole group went dashing out the door.

**/=+=/**

**This was supposed to be part of the previous chapter, but I decided that I should break it up into two of them. So here you go. Maybe I'll do an OMAKE about the wallpaper soon…or I'll work on the next chapter. Who knows?**


	13. He Tells All

**Sooo…who likes the next chapter? After all that venting before, I'm pretty sure everyone's up for it, huh? All right, no more teasing! Here you go~! I had fun with this chapter, cause all I was listening to was "Pieces" by Red. Take a look, cause the chorus is going to show up here~ ;D**

**/=+=/**

Heilrich stared at the night sky for what felt like forever. He was contemplating his choice to stay like this…to stay in a child-like fantasy for the rest of his life. This was all for Feliciano, he told himself. This was all so that he could be happy again. After everything that has happened to him…this was for him.

_He's never smiled like that for me._ He thought. _He was never happy with me…while I was really me._

It was like he was living a lie. It was like he was forcing himself to live in something that he used to be. Was it even possible to live something like this for a time before someone calls his bluff? Roderich did promise to keep this a secret, and if he explained himself well Kiku and Charice will accept it. Gilbert…he'll have to manage it.

_This is for Feliciano…this is all for him…_ He sighed. _Don't doubt yourself, Ludwig…no, Heilrich…_

He closed his eyes and remembered the past. His past. His beautiful past with Italy…

The countless of times he had asked Italy to join his side…

The day when he realized that he was living in his house…

The time when Italy walked to him wearing one of Hungary's dresses…

The moment when he learned why Italy would never accept his offer…

And the love he was given when…

Heilrich lifted his finger and touched his lips, feeling his body warmth on his skin, and began to wish that it could be Feliciano's instead. Since he was staying as Holy Roman Empire, he had no worries about doing that. But what Roderich said before…would he really miss Ludwig…?

_Feliciano waited for Holy Rome for a long time. He doesn't have to worry about me anymore…_ He rubbed his forehead. _God, Heilrich…why are you worrying about this? You made your choice. There's no problem in this choice…_

He was about to ignore everything when he suddenly felt a pair of eyes staring at his back. He turned around and saw Feliciano staring back at him with widened eyes, shaking rapidly as if he had just realized something. And…was he crying as well…?

"Italy…"

"…_Lud…?"_

He froze. Did he just say what he thought he said? Before he had a chance to say anything, he felt something stab him through the back. He collapsed on the ground, causing Feliciano to scream and run towards him, screaming Ludwig's name.

"Ludwig! _**Ludwig!"**_ He shook him. "What's wrong? Talk to me, please!"

"…_Feli…"_ He looked up to his golden eyes, sparkling with tears. _"…how did you…know…?"_

"How…?" He laughed quietly. "Kiku told me…in his own little way…"

"_Oh…I see…to think that you can notice subliminal messages…"_

He cringed in pain, causing Feliciano to panic and hold onto him. He couldn't remember the last time Feliciano held onto him like this, not even as Holy Roman Empire. The pain no longer seemed to affect him anymore, making him feel more like he was floating on a cloud.

"Why didn't you tell me this…?" He sobbed. "Why didn't you tell me…?"

"_I knew you weren't an idiot. You…wouldn't believe me…"_ He looked up into the sky as another wave of pain ran through his body. What was going on…? _"And I…wasn't planning on even seeing you…?"_

"E-eh?"

"_When I was turned like this, my boss told me to hide somewhere else…I suggested here, since it was close to my country…"_ Ludwig sighed. _"I never thought…you'd be here…"_

"So when I mistook you for Holy Rome, y-you played along…?" Feliciano looked mad. "W-why would you do that? Why would you lie to me like that?"

"…_I wasn't."_

Feliciano froze at Ludwig's serious expression on his face. That's when everything was summed up together.

"_I was Holy Roman Empire…and I was Germany. I was both of them."_ He bit his lip at another wave of pain, trying his best to resist it. _"But both of them can't exist at the same time…so I was going to stay like this…"_

"Stay as Holy Roman Empire…? Stay like Heilrich…?" Feliciano gasped. "For…me?"

"…_I never saw you smile like you did to me, Feliciano…I just…wanted you to smile like that again…"_

Another wave of pain shot through him, and he felt his arms and legs slowly going asleep. Ludwig cringed and started to thrash around, trying his best to resist it, as Feliciano screamed at him, asking him what was wrong. His consciousness was slipping, fast.

_No…I don't want this to end…_

**/= [FLORIDA] =/**

"W-what the…?"

"Eh? What's wrong?"

Rizal and Alfred looked at Arthur, who was standing in front of his magic circle. The circle had been glowing a bright blue for a few minutes, but just recently it turned a shining golden yellow. By the look on Arthur's face…that isn't normal in a spell casting.

"I don't understand it…something's rejecting the spell…"

"Rejecting it?" Alfred blinked. "Hah, maybe Ludwig doesn't want your help!"

"No, I'm pretty sure that Charice said that he wanted to be turned back to normal. Maybe it was interference?" Arthur grinned. "But the interference isn't that strong…I can easily override this."

**/= [BACK TO AUSTRIA] =/**

The pain was quickly becoming unbearable to him. He was thrashing so much that Feliciano had to hold him down before he hurt himself. Through the pain, all Ludwig could think about is how this was similar to how he almost died in the war against France. All that pain, yet he was only thinking about one thing…

"A-are you dying, Ludwig? Are you leaving me again?" Feliciano was sobbing. _**"Don't leave me, Doitsu! Don't leave me again!"**_

"…_I'm not…leaving you…"_

"But you're dying, Ludwig! You're leaving me again, aren't you? Just like what you did before and grandfather Rome…" He was sobbing in his arms. _"Why? Why is everyone leaving me…?"_

He had to resist the feeling of his body falling asleep, it was slowly becoming nonexistent. It was as if his body was evaporating like water. With the last of his energy, Ludwig hugged him with all his might, feeling the grip of the other man holding him as much as he could.

"…_I've come undone…but you make…sense…of who I am…"_

Feliciano paused. Was Ludwig singing to him…?

"_Like puzzle pieces…in your hand…"_

He felt his body weight drop, and Feliciano saw as Ludwig dropped onto the ground, his body starting to glow. Feliciano curled up next to him, feeling the warm glow of his body. Ludwig's arm wrapped around his back, making more tears going down his face.

"_Then I see…your…face…"_

"_I know I'm finally yours…"_

"_I find everything…I thought I lost…before…"_

His body was completely in a glow, turning the black robe on his frame into a shining yellow. It was now crawling up his arms and neck, about to hide his face. However, he was fighting the pain and holding the crying Italian in his arms, rubbing his fingers through his hair.

"_You…call my name…"_

"_I come to you…in pieces…"_

His face was about to be covered by the light as a small smile pulled his cheeks out.

"_So you…can…make…"_

"_Me…whole…"_

His head dropped, mentally exhausted. Feliciano slowly sat up, feeling the arms dropping down to his waist. His eyes began to fog up as he started shaking Ludwig with all his strength.

"_Ludwig…?"_ He sobbed. _**"No! Ludwig! Please, wake up! Wake up!"**_

Meanwhile, everyone else had heard the screaming and ran toward the gardens. Kiku was the first to open the door and saw Feliciano shaking the glowing figure. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, the glow completely overtook them.

**/= [FLORIDA] =/**

"And the spell is done."

Everyone looked at Arthur as he lowered his hands, the circle in front of him ceasing to glow until it stopped completely. Alfred stared at him with a few minutes before sighing and turning his head in a panic.

"THIS is why I'm scared of you…" He sighed.

_I wonder what was wrong with ate._ Rizal thought for a few minutes. _She seemed to be in a panic when I called her…_

**/= [AUSTRIA] =/**

Feliciano held the body as it slowly started to cease its glowing. When he lowered his arms, he saw that Ludwig had turned back to his normal. He looked so dead, unmoving and pale. But in his Holy Roman Empire robes, he looked so much like Holy Rome. How did he not see this before…?

"…_Ludwig…? D-don't leave me…"_

"…_I'm not…leaving…"_

He looked at the body as he saw his eyes twitched and open, revealing that he was awake. He turned toward the Italian as his eyes started to tear up, shaking rapidly before hugging him on the ground. Ludwig cried in pain, startling the poor boy.

"Ah~!" He looked up. "A-are you OK?"

"…Yeah…my whole body feels sore, that's all…" Ludwig sighed. "I don't think I can stand up yet…"

"That's fine…" Feliciano leaned on his shoulder. "I like lying down here…"

"Huh…?" Ludwig turned down to him. "You're…not mad at me…?"

"No…I was at first, but I then you said that you did this just for me…" Feliciano smiled. _"I never thought you would give so much up for me…"_

"…_I just wanted you to be happy…"_

"_Ve~~~I'm happy just like this, Ludwig…I'm happy with just the two of us…"_

Ludwig found himself holding onto Feliciano's shoulder as he cuddled closer toward the German. He looked back up into the sky, at the countless stars that was above them, and couldn't help but notice two of the stars had touched each other in the sky. He couldn't help but smile.

_It's Altair…and Vega._ He found himself thinking. _Damn, I'm getting too romantic…_

He looked down at Italy, who was smiling back at him with a stray tear that he couldn't help but wipe away.

_But for him…I don't mind._

…

"No, Elizabeta. You can't stay and take pictures."

"_But __**GILBERRRRRT…"**_

"That means you too, Charice."

"_**Nuuuuuuu…."**_

**/=EPILOUGE=/**

It had been a while since he had gotten back to work. Most of it was because Charice was ranting off to Arthur about the thousands of different things that could've happened when he had used that spell and telling him to _"thank his lucky stars"_ that it just happened to reunite Italy with his long lost love. With that huge slingshot in her hand, he was extremely grateful for that. Rizal actually had to pry her away from him that day.

After all that time, Germany had finally been able to get himself back to work. His boss was happy that he was back to normal, but even then he had given him a week to vent off, to which Germany insisted that he get straight to work. After a while, he decided that he was going to work anyway.

But when he had come to work that day, he found himself unable to. Ever since that day, he felt a little weird being away from Feliciano. But alas, work called him, and we all knew how much of a workaholic he was. Still, he was staring at the thing he had brought with him that day: a tiny red notebook.

_God, where do I even begin…?_ He sighed. _I really don't hope I turn into bruder like this…_

**[~Entry #111~]**

_**Dear Diary…**_

_**Uh…I don't know where to start. It's been a few hundred years since I last wrote in this notebook, and a lot has changed. I'm no longer the Holy Roman Empire. I'm now the Federal Republic of Germany, so much different from back then…but I still have contact with Italy…um…I mean Feliciano…**_

The phone started ringing, but he was too busy staring at the notebook to notice that it was ringing.

_**I hold more responsibility than I had when I was a young nation. I have to manage so many things, like the economy and foreign affairs. The modern days have us connecting with so many other nations that were not even in existence since I last wrote in here. But in some ways, I still have attachments of the past that I am grateful that I haven't let go of yet.**_

"_D-Doitsu…?"_

Ludwig looked up in confusion as he turned his head toward the phone, hearing a sobbing Feliciano on the other line. He was instantly reminded of the constant phone calls he had on his cell phone when he got home _(he had to listen to them with Feliciano at his side just to comfort him)_, and picked it up.

"_Doitsu…are you there…?"_

"…I'm here, Feli."

"_Eh~? Doitsu, is that you?"_

"Yes, this is me. I'm right here." He smiled. "And I always will be."

_**Yes…I really am grateful.**_

**[~End~]**

**/=+=/**

**For those of you who were wondering about the whole Altair and Vega thing, it's a legend about two lovers being separated in the sky and being allowed to meet only once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunisolar calendar. The more Japanese names are Orihime and Hikoboshi.**

**And…that's it~! Unless you guys are banging towards the OMAKE, in which case see you next chapter!**

**Other than that, thank you for staying here this whole time! Hopefully, you weren't completely turned off by this really odd ending of mine :D**


	14. OMAKE

**EVERYONE, GUESS WHAT? THERE'S AN OMAKE~!**

**/= [OMAKE] =/**

It all began with a cell phone.

Actually, it all began with Gilbert finding the cell phone.

…

We're all screwed.

**/=+=/**

"Oh, damn."

"What is it, Gilbert?"

"This is West's cell phone! Hah! I never thought the dude would actually forget his cell phone!"

"Ve~?" Feliciano peeked over Gilbert's shoulder. "Ah~! It's Doitsu's cell phone!"

"Yep, it is! That's great! Today's his birthday, and granting him an awesome cell phone is the best thing I can do!"

"Eh? You're going to give him his cell phone as a present?"

"Of course! That's just how awesome I am!"

"Ve~~~~but I got the best present for him…"

"What is it, Ita-chan?"

"_**PAASSTTTTAAAAAAA!"**_

"Pfft, I figured as much!" He laughed. "But I think we can figure out a better gift for him…"

Feliciano blinked in surprise as Gilbert stared at the Italian man and back at the cell phone in his hand. That happened for a few minutes before he blinked for a few other minutes and turned toward the Japanese man with his familiar grin on his face.

"When does West need his cell phone?"

"Hm…" Kiku smiled with Gilbert. "I don't think he needs it for a while."

"All right…I guess that means I do have a present for him…"

"Ve~?"

"Hey, Feliciano? Are you willing to cooperate for a few hours?"

**/=+=/**

Ludwig didn't know how or what the heck happened around this time, but all he knew was that the first minute he was missing his cell phone and the second minute Gilbert had come out of nowhere and handed it to him without a second thought with a small wink.

"You're very welcome, West."

"Eh?"

Gilbert only laughed and walked away, making Ludwig blink in confusion and turn back to his cell phone. He flipped it open, wondering if he had missed any important phone calls…

And saw a picture of Italy as the wallpaper.

And then there were a few more of them…

"…_**what the hell…?"**_

With each picture, Ludwig found himself even more traumatized by the minute.

…

And to this day, he could not bring himself to delete any of them.

**/=+=/**

**OMAKE'S DONE~ :D**

**I love all of your support and I hope to see you again!**


End file.
